The Fire Within
by Pitpit
Summary: A young Trainer with a mysterious past must find herself in order to change the world.
1. Introduction

Hello everyone! Pitpit here.

For those who do not know, a "Nuzlocke Challenge" is basically a Hard Mode of playing Pokemon! It is based off of the Nuzlocke Comic (which I suggest you read if you have not already).

A Nuzlocke has two main rules: 1) Catch first Pokemon on every route, and 2) If it faints, it dies.

Of course, you can add more rules to make your game more difficult, but for it to be an 'official' Nuzlocke, it must have those two rules.


	2. Prologue

A man who was a little over middle age was sitting at his desk in front of a computer screen and was typing away, as if he were in a rush to get whatever he was doing done quickly. He frowned, and the age lines around his face made him appear much older than he actually was. He continued typing for a few minutes, this time with less ferocity, and soon after he stood up and walked away from his computer towards the window. It was a beautiful day, and the Pidgeys were flying around without a care in the world. Sometimes a Pidgey would stand in the birdbath, and the man wished that he could go out and feed them.

Sometimes the man would imagine that he was young again, and that he and his Pokémon were out traveling the world. But not today. He had something very important to do today. _There's always tomorrow…_ His thoughts were soon interrupted.

"Professor Oak, Ms. Skye is here to see you. Shall I send her in?" one of his aides popped his head in through the door, being careful not to invade the professors' privacy.

"Hm? Oh, yes. Please send her in." The professor moved to the corner of his office and sat in a comfortable leather chair as a middle-aged woman with dark brown hair entered the room cautiously. "Ah, Amber… it's so nice to see you."

The woman smiled at him and walked across the room to sit across from the professor. "Professor Oak… there's something I need to talk to you about."

The professor immediately noticed that the woman was nervous. "Amber, you don't need to be anxious around me. We've known each other for years – we're all friends here."

Amber smiled hesitantly this time before crossing and re-crossing her legs. "I have something to ask of you. I know that every year, you give new Trainers their first Pokémon." She paused, and the professor was looking at her expectantly. "Well… I…"

"You were wondering if I was to give your daughter her first Pokémon?" the professor finished her sentence.

"Yes! But it's just that… you know how she is. Ever since… the incident… she's not been the same." Amber was starting to tear up, her golden eyes seemed to be glowing as her face started to swell and turn red. "It pains me to see her like this! It's been eight years since it happened! Even though she can't remember… she's still not gotten over the trauma."

Professor Oak sighed and stood up. "Amber, you must remember that there was no other way."

The woman stood up and brushed the wrinkles out of her flowing pink and blue dress. Wiping her eyes with the back of her hands, she said, "Professor Oak, please… please help my daughter."

With a determined expression on his face, he looked at her and said, "I will do what I can. Ultimately, _she_ has to make the decision."

Amber looked a little bit happier as the professor pulled her into a fatherly hug. "Thank you…"

Professor Oak rubbed her back. "Now you go on home, I'll make sure I talk to her."

Amber strode towards the door, much more confident than how she entered. Professor Oak remembered a time when he first saw her, when she had moved into town with her Pokémon, a Pontya. He remembered when her face was free of age, and her hair was vibrant and her demeanor filled with confidence. Her daughter was riding on the Ponyta, giggling with glee and staring straight at her mother. Standing in the shadows under the tree was her father, talking on a cell phone with his back turned away from them, a Persian lying by his feet.

_Oh, but that was a long time ago…_


	3. Part One

"Honey, I'd like you to run this over to Professor Oaks' Lab for me, okay?" Amber addressed her daughter, who was sitting on the couch and aimlessly channel surfing. The girl softly grunted a reply, her eyes never leaving the television. Amber ruffled the envelope she had in her hand, an envelope that held an important transcript of what happened that day. A police report. Her daughter didn't know of it – how could she after what happened – and that was how Amber intended it to stay. "Blue, did you hear me? This is important – I need you to bring this to Professor Oak right now."

The girl fidgeted in her seat on the couch. She wasn't really watching the TV. Nothing seemed to attract her attention in the years since the incident. She was searching for a way to make her mind melt. All she could do was think, think, think. Oh, how terrible it was! Night after night was the same nightmare. Day after day, it was the same monotone routine. She didn't want the same routine, nor did she want anything to happen. Nothing would ever change in her life, so what's the point in trying?

"Blue!" her mothers' voice became shrill, which was a rare thing to hear.

"Yes mother, I heard you." Blue didn't pride herself on anything. Hell, she barely thought of herself at all. She felt that she lost all sense of caring long ago, in a time where pain never existed. Blue got up from the grey sofa and stretched. She was wearing dark grey sweatpants and a white tank top, her brown hair unkempt.

Her mother gave her a disapproving look. "You're not going out like that, are you, Blue? This is important, so _please_ look respectable! Professor Oak has been waiting for this envelope for some time now, and I have only just finished them. Make sure that only he sees them, okay?" Blue sighed and went upstairs to wash up. Fifteen minutes later, she came back down in a blue tank top, a red flowing skirt and a white sunhat. "Much better, sweetie. I'll see you in a little while, okay?" She brought her daughter into a hug as Blue grabbed the envelope from the table.

"Sure," said Blue. "I won't be gone long." Blue took one last look at her mother before stepping outside.

Pallet Town was a small, quiet town that experienced nearly 365 days of sunshine every year, and beautiful weather all year round. It was the perfect place for the elderly and young alike – with the plentiful parks and natural lake to the south, there were many outdoorsy things to do. Pokémon breeders tended to take a stroll through Pallet in order to socialize the babies, so there was always a sense of happiness in the town.

Blue always thought of Pallet as home, but since the incident she felt disjointed from the rest of the community. The closest thing to a friend she had was Gary, with whom she had been rivals with since she was a baby. Everything they did together was a competition, and Blue was not one to accept defeat. Gary was the same way – he would taunt her with childish name-calling and pranks. But he had been gone for a few years, off to a distant land called France. She didn't miss _him_, she missed the companionship that momentarily shut off the pain receptors in her heart. She was eighteen years old, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get rid of her emotions.

_Some things never change, no matter how hard one may try. . ._

When Blue traveled across town for something, she would always lose herself in her thoughts and not notice what was happening around her. She had gotten so caught up in thinking about the hole in her heart that she had failed to notice that she was about to walk straight into the large wooden door of Professor Oak's Pokémon Lab. Luckily, Gregory, one of Professor Oak's aides, saw Blue and quickly opened the door for her. All of the aides knew that she would be coming, so they led her to the main room where Professor Oak would meet them.

Blue followed the aides into the room, but there was only one person in the room. He was a young man with spiky, unkempt brown hair. He was wearing a black short sleeved shirt and purple pants (an unusual combination, but he pulled it off) with a red and blue circle pendant around his neck. Something about him seemed strangely familiar… "What, it's you, Blue? Gramps isn't here."

"Gary?" Blue was bewildered. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in France?" She gazed at him with unfazed eyes. Sure, his presence surprised her, but nothing further than that.

"Gramps was supposed to give me a Pokémon today – it's about damn time, too! I've grown tired of waiting. I should have gotten my first Pokémon YEARS ago… if I had, I would never have gone to France. Hah! What a shithole. Bunch of smelly, hairy fags."

Blue didn't know anything about France, but she knew he was way off on his assumption and she also knew that he'd continue ranting if she responded to his childish antics. "Right. I need to find him; do you know where he went?"

Gary faced her and crossed his arms. "Who knows? That old coot could be anywhere." He went to the leather couch that was on the far side of the wall and flopped down without a glance back at Blue.

Blue shook her head and exited the Pokémon Lab. There were only a few places that the professor could go in this small town, and she passed by most of them on her way here. She looked towards her left, where the road abruptly ended and lead into a field of tall grass. She walked towards it, a little hesitant to go through. She wasn't exactly wearing the right outfit to go through tall grass. _Well, I need to find the professor, and this is the only way he could have gone. _ She took one step. And then another. She kept taking steps until one more step would make her foot go into the tall grass. . .

. . .

. . .

"Hey! Don't go into the tall grass! Wild Pokémon live there, it's not safe!" A voice came from behind her, accompanied by huffing and wheezing. "Whew… I'm getting too old for this."

Blue looked at the older man – it was Professor Oak! He was hunched over with his hands on his knees, his graying hair askew. "Professor, I've been looking for you. Here, this is -" She stopped when the professor waved his hand back and forth to cut her off.

Once he caught his breath, he stood up and straightened his lab coat. He smiled at Blue and said, "Please, Blue, follow me. We'll talk more at the Lab."

"Gramps! It's about time you showed up! I've been waiting here for an hour!" Gary stood with his hands on his hips and his eyes were raging. He crossed his arms and humph'd as the professor walked past him with Blue trailing along.

"Hm? Gary? … Oh! I'm sorry. You're right; I forgot that I told you I'd be giving you a Pokémon today." His face looked apologetic and he ran one hand through his gray hair. Gary still glared at him and crossed his arms. "Now, if you two would excuse me for a second, I'll be right back…" the professor walked to the back to the lab and into an office, where he shut the door behind him.

"Tch. Blue, come here." Gary looked at Blue, his face brows furrowed. She had been standing to the side, her arms crossed behind her back as she stared at the floor. She looked up at him and walked over to him. He grabbed the collar of her shirt and shook her once. "Don't you DARE take him from me," he growled.

Blue was shocked at being shaken but soon regained her composure. "What are you talking about? I went to find him and –"

"Shut up," he snarled, his brown eyes flashing with rage. "I know your little game. You're trying to get HIS –" he shot a glance at where the professor went "- attention. Putting on this shitty little 'emotionless' act just for pity!" He shook her again roughly, but Blue didn't flinch, her eyes remained a dull blue. She took the verbal abuse before putting her hand on his wrist.

"Let me go." She narrowed her eyes as her brows furrowed, her lips curving downward into a frown.

Gary glared at her again before pushing her backwards, which caused her to stumble. She was able to regain her composure and straighten her shirt just as the professor walked in. "Here we are," the professor said while carrying a briefcase. He set it on the desk and took a key out of his pocket and unlocked it. Popping the top he told them, "Inside here are three Pokéballs. Each one contains a Pokémon! Blue, you can choose first."

"Hey! What about me, your family? I was here first!" Gary became enraged and stomped his foot and his grandfather sighed.

"Gary, please not now… Go on, Blue. Pick your Pokémon."

Blue stood in front of the table and hesitated.


	4. Part Two

"Professor, I only came to get you because I have this paperwork for you. Mother said it was important." Blue looked from the briefcase to the old man and took the now-crumpled envelope out of her pocket. She attempted to hand it to the Professor, but he just shook his head.

"Blue," he said, his grey eye gazing from her to Gary and back again. "That can wait; it's not as important as your mother made it out to be."

Blue blinked in confusion before placing the envelope back into her pocket. "I don't know why you would want to give a Pokemon to me."

"Oh, for fuck's sake, Blue! Just pick a fucking Pokemon already!" Gary was getting impatient, his brown eyes blazing with rage. He walked up to the table and slammed his fists against it, leaving small indents in the rich mahogany. Blue gazed at the faint marks that he had left on the table before looking at the three Pokeballs that were on the table. All three of them had a sticker on it: a leaf, a flame, and a drop of water. She concentrated and took her time choosing, in order to be careful on her journey ahead. She placed her hand above the Pokeball with the leaf sticker, before changing her mind and grabbing the flame-stickered Pokeball.

"Fine, then I choose this one!" Gary arrogantly grabbed the Pokeball that held the water sticker, a triumphant look on his face.

Blue looked at the Pokeball that was in her hand, her fingers tapping lightly on the smooth surface. _I wonder what's inside? This must be... a fire-type?_ The ball was warm, and it strangely felt like some kind of pulsating energy. Living energy.

Professor Oak watched the two children with their new Pokemon with a slight smile on his face. He never got tired of giving children their first Pokemon - it made him even happier to know that they eventually became calmer and more confident adults. _Oh, to be young again..._

"Hey Blue! Let's have a battle!" Gary was smirking as if he had already won. He tossed his Pokeball into the air and caught it before aggressively throwing it in front of him. Blue wasn't sure what Pokemon would be inside, so she was surprised when, in a flash of light, a small bipedal blue turtle with a curly tail stood where the light hit the ground.

Blue blinked - she had never seen a Pokemon battle before. She barely knew anything about Pokemon, but she did know that there were three "Starter Types": Fire, Water and Grass. She guessed that the blue turtle was a water type by its color, and that her new Pokemon would most likely be a fire type, judging by the orange flame sticker that was on her Pokeball. _Do your best, mystery Pokemon..._ Taking a deep breath, she tossed the Pokeball into the air. In a flash of light, a small bidepal orange lizard stood proudly, the flame on its tail flickering merrily.

The orange lizard cried excitedly, eyeing the blue turtle eagerly. "Charmander, char!" It turned to face Blue, its face lit up with glee.

Professor Oak noticed that Blue was just looking at the Charmander, as if lost in thought and wondering what she should do. He had known, ever since the incident, that she had withdrawn into herself, but something about right now, at this moment, something was changing. Ever since she had laid her hand upon Charmanders' Pokeball, her eyes had started to become a little less dull, as if something was removing the film that blinded her.

"Squirtle! Tackle it! Get him with your shell!" Gary barked out orders to his Pokemon as if he had been battling his entire life. The blue turtle nodded to his new trainer and ran at the orange lizard at full speed. The quick little lizard dodged the attack, however, since it was much faster than his opponent. "Again!" Gary continued, but still Blue had yet to say a command.

"Blue," Professor Oak started, "tell your Charmander to use either the move 'Scratch' or 'Leer'. He'll know what to do from there." This word of advice seemed to enrage Gary - for he had been trying to catch his grandfathers' eye the entire match. Shooting a death glare at Blue, he frowned and told his Pokemon to use another Tackle, and this time to not hold back.

This time, the blue turtle was able to collide with its target, scoring a direct hit. The orange lizard was knocked back a few feet, rolling as it went. It struggled to get back on its feet. "Oh yeah! Critical hit!"


	5. Part Three

Blue shot a quick glance at the Professor, her eyes unsure. She then looked back at the hurt Pokémon, and her expression quickly changed into one of pleading. "Please... please be okay! Please get back up!" She looked at the Professor again, who pointed with his head at the Charmander, who was steadily getting back to its feet, however shaky.

"Let's go, Squirtle! Again!" Gary pointed at the Charmander, smirked and flashed a toothy grin. "You're finished!" His Pokémon obediently charged again, and Charmander jumped to the side at the last minute. "Speed won't save you. Squirtle, keep doing it!" The Squirtle again charged at Charmander.

"Uhm... Charmander, is it? Use... uhm... Scratch!" Blue hesitantly called out an order to her Pokémon, who shot her a glance, nodded once and sprang into action. It was if it was an entirely different Pokémon - with Blue's command, he felt a surge of adrenaline and quickly dodged all of the Squirtles' Tackles. Fwooosh! went the air as Charmander slashed at the Squirtles' head.

"Withdraw!" Gary commanded his Pokémon at the last second, narrowing missing getting a critical hit. He frowned; he hadn't expected Blue to retaliate.

Charmander jumped back towards his new trainer and puffed himself up. "Char!" it growled. He was anxious to fight. He glanced back at Blue, who looked very unsure. She caught his eye and shrunk back a little.

"Now!" Gary's voice was heard at the same time Charmander narrowly dodged another hit.

"Uhm... use Leer, Charmander!" Blue called, sincerely hoping that Charmander would be alright.

At the command, Charmander gave an evil glare to Squirtle, who stopped in his tracks and withdrew into his shell from fear.

"Now use Scratch!"

"Squirtle, get out of there!"

Charmander rushed forward and scratched Squirtle just as he was coming out of his shell. He stumbled backwards and fell on his back. Now the Squirtle was stuck; he couldn't free himself from the floor. Charmander took his chance and pounced on his opponent, his claws extended. Gary's eyes widened a little, however he quickly masked his fear. Blue was stunned - she feared that her Pokémon about to kill the poor turtle.

"Charmander, that's enough." Professor Oak calmly stated, walking forward towards the two brawlers. Charmander hopped off his opponent, walked towards Blue and sat by her feet. Professor Oak helped the Squirtle up, and it immediately went to huddle by Gary.

"...I picked the wrong Pokémon." Gary hung his head, his eyes shaded by his hair. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were white. His Squirtle looked up at him, its face sad.

"Blue, Gary, you have to be careful in Pokémon fights. You mustn't let them become too rough, otherwise they will die. Most of the time, a Pokémon will faint when it has become unable to battle. However, occasionally a Pokémon will get into a situation - just like your Squirtle was in, Gary - where it is strong enough to battle, but it is 'trapped' by something, be it the environment, its own body, the other Pokémon, what have you." He paused and looked at both of the young trainers. Gary, his grandson, would have a hard time figuring out what it really means to be a trainer. Blue, on the other hand, would have to decide if this was the path she wanted to take, and if she could handle her chosen path.

Blue crouched down and hugged her Charmander, who lay panting on the floor. She patted its head, and felt the same warm, living energy inside of it as she had felt from its Pokéball. _So warm... _The Charmander closed its eyes as if it were enjoying the attention. _Is this what it's like to own a Pokémon?_ Blue looked back at the professor.

Gary eyed Blue as she petted her Pokémon. _Humph! She shouldn't have won - that was a fluke! Or rather... my Pokémon was weak, even with a type advantage._ He glanced at the tiny turtle that delicately held his legs and frowned.

Professor Oak continued, "Normally after a Pokémon battle, the losing trainer forfeits a cash prize to the winner. Since it was your first battle, Gary, I will cover it." Gary looked even more mad at the prospect of losing any more money. Blue was surprised yet happy when she was told she was getting money. "Now, do you want to name your Pokémon?" He looked first to Blue, then to Gary.

"I want to name my Charmander... I want to name him 'Coal'." Blue pet her Charmander on the head again and looked at the Professor. Her Pokémon cocked its head to the right at its new name, but then nodded and growled with contentment.

"Your Charmander is very energetic; Coal is a fine name." Professor Oak smiled before looking at Gary. "Gary? Do you want to name your Squirtle?"

Gary looked out the window before facing his grandfather, his expression serious. "No. I understand now that I must make my Pokémon fight to get stronger. Smell ya later." He then briskly walked out the door without looking back. His Squirtle was almost left behind, but it quickly followed his new Trainer, tripping slightly on its way out.

Professor Oak shook his head, a small frown forming on his face. "That boy... Here, Blue. This is the prize money that you won from Gary. Try to battle a lot of trainers to earn more money. You can buy healing and battle items for your Pokémon at Pokémarts. There's actually one in the next town over, in Viridian City." He handed Blue a wad of cash from his pocket. "May I see that envelope, Blue?"

Blue smiled slightly as she took the cash from the professor, nodded and switched the cash for the envelope and handed it to him. "Professor... if Pokémon have to fight to get stronger, doesn't that hurt them? Do Pokémon like fighting?"

"When I was a trainer, I experienced many Pokémon battles and I became friends with a wide variety of species. My profession is, in fact, the relationship between Pokémon and people. To answer your question, yes, Pokémon like fighting. However, Pokémon are similar to people: each one has a different personality. Take, for example, your Charmander. Coal has a Quirky personality, or Nature. What that means, for him, is that none of his attributes, or stats, is hindered or strengthened."

Blue blinked, very confused. "Uhm...?" Coal looked from his trainer to the old man.

"Ahah... sorry, I got carried away. In simpleton terms, some Pokémon like fighting, while some prefer not to fight. There are some trainers who will use a Pokémon who doesn't like to fight anyway - I'm not sure how that would alter their personality, however. Hmm... " He paused to consider what he said. "Anyway, Blue. I've taken up too much of your time! You should get going!"

"Get... going? Where am I going? I don't have anything else to do besides go home and help Mom with chores..." she trailed off when Professor Oak laughed.

"The purpose of giving you a Pokémon was for you to go on your very own Pokémon journey."


	6. Part Three and a Half

"A... journey?" Blue was puzzled - she had never thought about travelling before. The thought of going out in the wilderness, alone, was unappealing to her. She vaguely remembered that her mother was a Trainer at some point and had loved traveling with her Pokémon. Now, her mother had settled down, but occasionally she'd sigh and look out the window longingly. "A journey doesn't seem right for me, Professor."

He looked at the girl, who didn't seem to understand his meaning. Her Charmander, Coal, seemed sad, as if she had forgotten all about him. "You wouldn't be alone; you have your Coal. Look, he wants to travel - he'd protect you."

"Charmander, char char!" Coal nodded his head vigorously and hopped up and down, looking at his trainer the entire time.

Blue bit her lip and glanced down at her Pokémon. _He really does seem excited... But where would I go? There doesn't seem to be any point... I... this is too much... _"Professor Oak... I don't know what to tell you. Traveling... _*sigh*_ I just..." Blue shifted the weight from her right foot to her left and clasped her hands together. "I need to go home," she said after a moments' pause.

Professor Oak hid his disappointment, however he couldn't blame the girl for being so hesitant. He often wondered, every time he saw her, how much she remembered. An Alakazam is brilliant and effective, but how much her mind was altered he had no clue. Feelings of guilt had not left him since that day, but he felt as if he had no other choice. So he sighed and said, "It's okay, Blue. Talk it over with your mom - she cares for you more than you know."

Blue smiled lightly and picked up her Charmander and held it close. Coal snuggled into her chest and growled in contentment. A light feeling came over her, and Butterfrees fluttered in her stomach. "Oh, Blue! Before you go, if you want to bring your Charmander back into its ball, all you have to do is point the ball at it and say 'Coal, return!' or something very similar. However, you are perfectly able to have him remain outside of his Pokeball." Blue nodded and hugged Coal again. She then walked out the door to his office and out of the Pokémon Lab.

And Professor Oak was one hundred percent sure that she wouldn't stay in Pallet Town.


	7. Part Four

"Mom?" Blue stuck her head in the door and looked around the dark room. Her mother had a habit of turning all of the lights off when they weren't in use, and often shut the light off on Blue when she didn't realize that her daughter was in the room. Blue took a step into the room and shut the door behind her. Taking her hat off of her head, she set it on the end table and turned on the light. A faint noise could be heard from down the hall, so she took a step toward it. _Ahh, the shower. I guess it is that time of day, isn't it?_ Blue let out a light giggle.

Every day, in the middle of the day, at the exact same time, Blue's mother would take a shower. Normally an insignificant little thing like a shower wouldn't have needed an explanation, but Blue found the reason for her doing this somewhat amusing. Back when Blue's mother was young, she was dating this smart young man who was interested in Pokemon evolution.

He had asked to see her Ponyta one day and, being the outdoorsy type, her mother enthusiastically showed him to the pasture in which her beloved Pokemon was kept. Amber was still in the 'crushing' phase of her relationship with this man that she was being silly in order to impress him: she was hopping over fences like a Mankey. Oh, they had a fun time, until she became overconfident and missed the landing and BAM! she fell into a pile of Tauros droppings and, when she was being helped up by this man, she slipped on another pile and pulled him down with her.

_"I was so embarrassed that I broke up with him a few days later," Amber confessed to her daughter. "There was no way that I could face him after that! Ugh, ever since then, I've always felt so DISGUSTING and I need to scrub myself clean! Now I'm told that he did become the professor that he always wanted to be, and that his research is progressing smoothly. He even married! Funny how things turn out, right Blue?"_

Blue moved to the table, picked up the paper, and began to read. She was halfway through the article "Maverick's Magikarps - The Biggest and the Best!" when her mother came into the room, drying her damp hair with a towel. "Hi, mom." Blue stopped reading and lowered the paper.

"Hi, honey! What brings you back home? Did Professor Oak give you a Pokemon? Oooh, which one did you choose? I...! Oh!" she coughed very loudly and gave a nervous laugh. "I mean, did you give the Professor the envelope?"

Blue raised an eyebrow. "You knew?" she asked. Her mother smiled and nodded. "Mother, I... I don't think I can. Coal does seem excited, but... I'm not cut out for a journey." Blue lowered her eyes to the table, folded her hands across her lap, and frowned.

"Coal?" Amber looked out the open window and spotted an orange lizard hiding in the flowerpot. "Oh, you must mean the little cutie who is eating all of my petunias! Did you choose him, or did he choose you?"

"Sorry about your petunias, mom... I picked Coal seemingly at random... Gary was... he was being himself and I panicked..."

"Don't worry about the flowers, dear... Oh! Gary's back in town? And you panicked... Well, that does it! Coal's Pokeball appealed to your instincts the best, and you chose the best fit for you!" Amber sat down next to her daughter and wrapped her arm around her. Blue leaned in against her mother. "But why do you think you're not cut out for a journey? You have your very own Pokemon! And a Fire-type, no less. Fire-types are strong, brave and loyal. What more could you want in a Pokemon?"

Coal clambered in through the window and plopped into the sink. "Char..." He propped himself up and looked over the side of the counter. He paused for a moment before hurtling over the side and rolling on the floor. Blue looked up with surprise but Amber calmly smiled. Coal then shook himself and wandered to sit next to Blue. "Char!"

"What a smart Pokemon you have, Blue." Amber beamed down at her daughters' Pokemon.

Blue was silent as she pet Coal. Her mother was right - Coal did seem as if he'd be there for her no matter what. She sighed.

"I think that a Pokemon journey will really help you grow. Why, when I was young, my Ponyta and I... haha, we really did a number of crazy things on our journey. We even won The Great Race outside of Fuschia City!" Amber laughed as she recalled the memories of long ago before becoming serious again as she faced her daughter. "Blue... You won't ever become happy if you stay here. I love you, and I know your Pokemon will love you. As your mother, I don't want you to leave, but I know it'll be for the best. Will you give it a shot, for me?" Amber pleaded to her daughter, longing in her eyes.

Blue looked at her mom and bit her lip, eyes filled with worry. "Okay, mom... I'll try."

Mother and daughter embraced and held each other tight. Amber kissed her daughter on the head. "Make sure you get your bag and your hat before you go, dear. I'll be rooting for you, baby!"

It was midday and the Pidgeys were cooing. Springtime during Pallet Town sure was beautiful. Blue adjusted the bag on her shoulder as she looked at the open field in front of her. Route 1, the beginning for all trainers, was a relatively peaceful but hilly place. Her Charmander glowed with health as it growled excitedly.

"So... I guess we just... go forward?" Taking a deep breath, she stepped forward into the tall grass. She walked for a few minutes without encountering a single Pokemon, much to the disappointment of her Charmander

Across the distance, Blue spotted a man near a sign. She hurried over to him, Coal bounding across happily, the flame on his tail brightly crackling.

"Hello there!" the man called, waving as the two drew near. He looked as if he were a little bit older than she, and he wore a blue smock with a Pokeball logo on the front and had tousled light brown hair. "I work at a Pokemon Mart, or Pokemart for short. Here, have this as a promotional item!" He handed a Potion to Blue and smiled.

"Uhm... th-thank you. I think we may be lost," she indicated to her Pokemon, who was rolling a rock on the ground.

"Ah, I knew you were a rookie trainer. If you follow the path here - at some point the grass is very overgrown - you'll find your way to Viridian City. It's about a half hours' walk from here." He pointed and gestured seemingly at random.

"Viridian City...? Isn't that the... uhm..."

"The pathway to the Pokemon League? Sure is. We get a lot of trainers aiming to be 'The Very Best' and to challenge the Elite Four. Last I heard, the former Champion resigned and moved away to a far-off place called Unova." The man smiled again at Blue, sizing her up, his light grey eyes calculating. "Listen, I get off at six. How about I give you a little tour?"

Blue immediately got nervous and shuffled her feet. "Uhm...?"

"Daniel."

"Thanks for the Potion, Daniel, but... I..." Blue stuttered, not knowing what to do. Coal looked up at her and then to Daniel.

He put his hands up in the air. "Hey, don't worry about it. Maybe I'll see you around sometime." He winked at her. "What's your name?"

"My name's Blue." She waved goodbye and walked past him.

"I'll be waiting in the Pokemon Center lobby at seven if you change your mind!" he called after her.

Blue exhaled and lowered her head, holding on to her hat, for the wind almost blew it off of her head.

When Blue finally arrived at Viridian City, she wiped her forehead and let out a sigh of relief. Her Charmander was happy - he had been antsy and anxious the entire trip. Now, he was bounding around and letting out small bits of flame from his mouth. "Charmander, char!"

Blue had been thinking almost the entire walk over to Viridian. She first thought about the man, Daniel, and then about her Charmander, Coal. Gary did cross her mind, as well: she once had a crush on him when they were children, but those feelings had died down long ago. Blue wiped more sweat off of her head as she walked under the city gates. Just a little bit further ahead was a large building with a red roof - many trainers were walking in and out of it, their Pokemon by their sides. Blue sped up and soon reached the frosted sliding glass doors.

The cool air drenched over her and Coal as she stepped inside. Trainers sitting on benches and eating with their Pokemon, trainers talking amongst themselves, and trainers watching some battles on the TV was what she saw as she looked around. The sign on the doors said 'Pokemon Center', so Blue knew she would be in the right place. She decided to wait in line behind a tall, tan trainer with spiky dark brown hair.

Pleasant music played in the lobby as she waited. The radio announcer said the tune was called "Jigglypuff's Melody", and that it was the number one classic tune of the week.

"Your Charmander looks pretty tough," said the boy in front of her. His eyes were half-closed and he carried himself in a confident manner. "Have you both been training in Route 22?"

Blue replied, "Uhm... no... Coal and I just started out, actually... we just got finished walking here from Pallet Town..."

"Ah, Pallet Town, you say? So you must be new, my mistake. So what brings you to Viridian City? Do you plan on traveling, or do you plan on battling the Gym Leaders?" The boy was very curious. Slowly but surely, the line to the counter was dwindling. He took a step forward.

"I'm... I actually... I don't know. I'm doing this for my mother, she said it'd help me." Blue looked towards the ground and at her Charmander - it was leaning against her leg and was napping. "It's just me and Coal."

"For your mother? That doesn't sound very appealing. To me, at least. You need rock-hard determination and inner strength in order to 'help' yourself." He grinned a lopsided grin. "But, hey, I don't know what makes your Geodude roll." It was finally his turn at the counter, and he faced the woman with pink hair in two long circular ponytails. He flashed her a toothy smile. "Here's my Pokemon." He handed her six Pokeballs.

"Hello there! Sure, it will take a few moments. Wait, please..." The pleasant woman smiled kindly and turned to place the Pokeballs on a machine. She pressed a few buttons, and with a "ding ding ding-ding-ding!" a light pinged and she took the Pokeballs off of the machine and handed them back to the boy.

"Nurse Joy, now that you have finished examining my Pokemon... you can examine me, too!" He winked at her and flashed her another grin.

The woman known as Nurse Joy giggled nervously and said, "Oh, Brock..." before kindly shooing him away. The boy shrugged and walked over to sit down on a bench next to a pretty girl with long, purple hair, where he soon got slapped in the face.

"Hello, there! I can tell you're a new trainer. My name is Nurse Joy! I can heal your Pokemon for free." She tilted her head to the side and smiled brightly at Blue. "Oh? Your Charmander... he looks perfectly healthy. Did you need help with anything?"

Blue stood in front of the counter and nervously paused, trying to think of the right words to say. "Well..." she started. "I just came from Pallet Town, and I'm not sure where I should go. I... only just started my journey and..."

"Well, since this your first time here, I recommend taking a visit to the Pokemart, which is right down the street from here. You can buy all sorts of helpful items there, depending on how talented a trainer you are. There are a few routes you can head to from here: if you exit to the right here you will head straight to Route 22. The route you just came from is Route 1. Just north of here is Route 2." Nurse Joy looked at the long line behind Blue. "I'm sorry, but there's so many Pokemon that need to be healed... please excuse me."

Blue mumbled a quick, "Oh I'm sorry!" before heading out of line, picking up her Charmander and held him in her arms as she left. To Blue's surprise, the boy from earlier - _was his name Brock?_ - was leaning on the wall in the shade, waiting for her.

"Hey, newcomer." He got off the wall and took a step closer. "Since you're new, I can give you a quick tip on how to 'help' yourself. I was thinking about it earlier, and, I think you should stop worrying. Who will respect you? Do you respect yourself? I can tell by how you act that you feel as if you have no control." He crossed his arms and looked serious. Blue didn't know what to say. "Do me a favor and do this journey for YOURSELF. You, and you alone, are in charge of your future. How can you expect Pokemon to trust or listen to you if you have no trust in yourself? Think about it." He started to walk away, and without a backwards glance, he waved. "See ya."

Blue was silent as she watched the boy walk away. A few minutes went by as she pondered what he said. _I should... talk to mom about all of this..._

Coal snored loudly from her arms. Blue looked down at him and her features softened. She held him closer and lightly tapped his little orange arm. "Hey, Coal... wake up, sweetie..." He yawned and tried to roll over, but when he found he couldn't, he lightly struggled awake. "I think I'm going to head towards Route 2 to train. Are you ready?" Coal's eyes lit up excitedly and he started to bark with glee. Blue giggled and set him down, and as soon as she did, he hopped up and down and spat more fire out of his mouth.

"Alright, let's go!" Blue started walking north, and after a few minutes she noticed an old man laying in the middle of the road, his granddaughter fretting along side of him.

"HEY. GET OUT OF MY YARD - YOU'RE TRESPASSING!" he grumbled and raved from his spot on the floor. Blue got stopped and looked at his granddaughter for help. Coal puffed himself up and stood in front of his trainer, ready to protect her if the need arose.

"I'm so sorry... he's not had his coffee yet... he's always like this..." she said, her eyes downcast. "I have to stay here with him, otherwise he'll scare more people off. One time, he even attacked a boy..."

Blue took a step back. "Uhm... okay... I guess we'll go somewhere else for the time being..." She looked at Coal and turned back around. _I know, I wonder if the Pokemart has any coffee?_ She headed back towards from where she came, vaguely remembering the directions that the kind Nurse Joy told her.

When Blue finally found the Pokemart, easily noticeable by its blue roof, she was again lightly covered in sweat. She walked in through the frosted sliding glass doors and again felt the cool breeze against her face. The Pokemart was larger than it looked from the outside.

"Hey, you came from Pallet Town?" The man behind the counter asked her. "Nurse Joy gave me a call and said that you'd be coming." He waved Blue over.

Blue was confused. _Nurse Joy called here for me? I must have kept him waiting..._ "I'm sorry, I didn't know..." She walked over to the counter to speak with him.

"Professor Oak ordered this package from me, and it came in two weeks ago. We've been so busy that we haven't had a chance to call him, or, if we did, he was never in. Could you take it to him for me? In exchange, I'll give you five Pokeballs." He took out a small package from behind the counter and handed it to Blue.

She carefully placed the package safely inside of her bag. "Okay, I suppose I'll give it to him..." The man behind the counter smiled and handed her five Pokeballs.

"Thanks a lot! With the Elite Four coming up with a brand new Tournament, there have been a lot of trainers coming through here getting ready for it. Tell Professor Oak I said hi!"


	8. Part Five

Blue got back to Pallet Town a lot quicker than she had going to Viridian City. A seven year old boy named Joey had been sitting on a ledge on the side of a hill and was watching the Rattata intently. He had noticed her coming and instructed her that if she jumped off of the ledge, she'd get to Pallet Town "super fast-like".

When she walked through the Pokémon Lab doors, Blue spotted the Professor immediately. He was hunched over a table, talking with one of his aides. When he noticed Blue walking over towards him, he stood up and smiled. "Ah, Blue, back so soon? How is my old Pokémon? He seems to really like you."

Blue reached into her bag and pulled out the small package. "The guy in the Pokémart asked me to give this to you. He said it came in two weeks ago?"

"Ah, this is the prototype Pokeball I ordered! Thank you for bringing this to me." He set the package on the table just as a loud 'clunk' was heard from the back of the room.

"GRAMPS! What did you call me for?" Gary strode over to where the two were standing. Coal growled at him. Gary subtly kicked at him when he was walking, but Coal moved out of the way at the last second. "I could have been halfway to Saffron if you hadn't told me to come back!"

Professor Oak grimaced. He hated when his grandson acted this way, but it couldn't be helped. For the moment, that is. "I called you two here because I have something to give to you. You see these," he waved absently at a table behind him. "These are Pokedexes, my own invention! I have a favor to ask of you." He looked at both Blue and Gary.

Blue looked closely at what was on the table. Two small, red handheld machines were on it, lying side by side. They were identical, and one was open, revealing its insides. There was a small screen and underneath it was a bunch of buttons.

"And? Get on with it - I don't have all fucking day." Gary crossed his arms and scowled.

"Gary, please be patient. What I have to tell you is very important, as it concerns you... and your Pokémon." Professor Oak took a deep breath before continuing. "Now, these Pokedexes gather data on Pokémon that you meet in the wild. Even more data is gathered when you catch said Pokémon. My dream... my dream was to gather information on all Pokémon in the world. But, I'm too old! I'm not cut out for it any more. That's why I have a favor to ask of you both: would you take these Pokedexes and gather as much data as you can?" He grabbed both of the small red machines and handed them to Gary and Blue.

"I know the journey will be difficult, and you may even lose a Pokémon or two, but you two need to find your purpose in life. A journey with your Pokémon is the best way to do that. I know that when I was young..." he sighed, mixed emotions crossing his face. "Oh, but that's a story for another time."

Gary pocketed the Pokedex and turned to Blue. "Heh, I'm sorry to say this, Blue, but I won't need your help. I'll finish this sucker before you even get your first badge!" He confidently strode out of the room. "Smell ya later."

Blue watched him as he left. _I wonder what his problem is...?_ "Professor... thanks for the Pokedex. I will try my best to complete it." She too pocketed the Pokedex. "But... did I hear you correctly? I may 'lose a Pokémon or two'?" Coal snuggled against her leg and went back to sleep.

"That's right. You see... when Pokémon battle... Well, there's always a chance that they can die. I'm sure I told you this before, didn't I? When you had your battle with Gary earlier today?" Professor Oak looked at her questionably.

"...!" Blue was shocked - she must not have been listening to the professor when he mentioned it. "Uhm... no, I'm sorry... I don't remember..." She bowed her head.

"Unfortunately, it happens when you least expect it or when you're not careful. I too have lost a number of my closest friends... Even though your journey will be difficult, you must carry on." He turned around and rummaged through a few papers. "Oh! I received an e-mail from the League after you left. It seems as though you have been chosen to compete in something that the Elite Four calls a 'Nuzlocke' challenge."

Blue had been crouching on the floor next to her Charmander. "What does that mean? 'Nuzlocke'?"

Professor Oak grimaced. "A Nuzlocke challenge is where a number of different trainers throughout the regions are chosen to capture only one Pokémon per route. On top of that, they cannot catch duplicates of what they already own, but they may catch another once that Pokémon is dead. There are other rules, too. I suppose you want to know them, as well?"

Blue's face went white as she stood up. She was silent and waited for him to go on. "Hmm, let's see... 'A trainer chosen to compete in a Nuzlocke must be given a special Trainer Card' - I have that for you right here, Blue - 'and they must nickname everything that they catch. Backups are prohibited, however catching Pokémon from a new route that goes straight to the box is allowed.' I haven't known anyone to be chosen for a Nuzlocke in quite some time. Ever since the previous Champion resigned, the Elite Four has been making quite a ruckus lately." Professor Oak put his hand on her shoulder.

"This... this is... Professor, how am I supposed to make it?" Blue shook her head, negating what she had said. "I think... I'm going to go home..."

"Here, Blue. You need your Trainer card to continue your journey. I slipped Gary his inside of his Pokedex - he'll thank me later." He handed Blue her trainer card. "Good luck."

Blue turned around and headed out the door, her Charmander in tow, her eyes downcast and a frown on her face.

"Honey, you're back so soon?" Amber was making dinner when Blue walked in through the door with Coal and slumped on the table, her head on its cool surface.

"Mom, I need to talk to you..." mumbled Blue as she put Coal in his Pokeball. She didn't want him to see her like this.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" She put the food in the oven and then sat across from her daughter.

"Mom... why am I going on a Pokémon journey? I met a boy today and he... said some things... I don't know what to do. I have Coal, but then Professor Oak said that he could die, and..." Blue spoke really quickly and put her face against the table once more.

"Slow down, dear! What did this boy say to you? And the good professor is right; your Pokémon can and will die. It's all a part of life. Just as we die, they too will find their end. We all lose who we love at some point... like your father" Amber paused, a single tear in her eye. "It will happen, but you have to find a way to be strong."

Blue raised her head and looked at her mother. "The boy told me... he told me that I had to respect and trust myself... he said that I was in charge of my future... He also said that I should do this journey for myself"

"He's absolutely right, dear. It seems to me that what he said really got to you. What do you plan on doing about it? It hurts me to see you like this... but... there's nothing I can do if you don't want to help yourself..." Amber's faintly smiled. "I hope you find happiness, I really do."

Blue's eyebrows furrowed as she bit her lip. _When have I ever mattered...? I... I can't think like this... I... need to help myself...? I don't want to feel this way..._

"Okay," she said, her voice quiet but almost sure of itself.

The next morning, Blue was sweat-free and a little more sure than she had been the night before. She decided to leave her mother a note - "Mom, I've decided to go on my journey. I don't know what the future may hold, but I will try my best to handle everything that will happen. I love you, Blue" - and got her things together before leaving.

She was making good time before a soft crackling noise and a rustling appeared on her right. A Pokémon jumped out - it was a small tan bird with pink feet. "Piiidgey," it cooed.

_It's a Pokémon...! Okay... first I need to... _"Let's go, Coal!" she hurriedly grabbed his Pokeball and tossed it to the floor. In a flash of light, he appeared and growled at the bird. Out of his nostrils appeared a small flame. "Uhm... use Scratch!"

Coal jumped at the bird menacingly, but it didn't move. He scratched at the Pidgey once and then again for good measure. The bird cooed again and shook itself. Even though it was injured, it didn't seem to want to fight back. Coal faced his trainer and started growling. Blue had no idea what her Charmander wanted her to do.

Then she remembered and grabbed an unused Pokeball from her bag. "Oh! I have... should I throw this at it?" Coal nodded to her, as if he understood what she was saying. "Okay, here goes...!" Blue tossed the Pokeball at the Pidgey.

Once, twice, three times it shook before - ping! - a red light appeared on the release button, indicating that the Pidgey was caught. Blue picked up the Pokeball and looked at it. "I did it... My first catch! I guess... according to the rules... I have to nickname you. How about... 'Pudge'." Blue smiled and put her new Pokémon's' ball at the special belt on her bag.

A beeping came from her Pokedex. She pulled it out and at once it said "PIDGEY, the tiny bird Pokémon. It does not like to fight. It hides in tall grass and forages for food such as small bugs." On the screen showed a stock photo of a Pidgey and next to the picture was 'lv. 3', a 'female' sign, and its current moves.

"Oh? So you're a girl, Pudge? And you're... level three... Okay. What level are you, Coal...?" she quickly looked it up - 'lv. 7' it said. "Oh! You know Ember, too?"

"Charmander char char!" he puffed himself out and spat fire to the grass. Alarmed, he quickly doused it with his tail.

"That wouldn't have been good, Coal... you have to be more careful next time..."

She made good time back to Viridian City and quickly healed her two Pokémon at the Center before making her way to Route 2, where she caught "Sting" the female Weedle. She also stepped into Viridian Forest - as that was what the sign said - and was immediately attacked by Bug Pokémon, but a Pikachu shocked them all and saved her. Coal became fast friends with the girl Pikachu and so "Bolt" joined the team.

Blue quickly found that her Pokedex was very annoying, turning it off as she headed her way back to the city. As she was coming back, she was jumped by the grumpy old man from yesterday. "I'm sorry about before," he cackled. "I'm not much of a morning person. Here, have this." He then handed Blue a small, collapsible TV. "It's called a Teachy TV! It'll tell you everything that a rookie trainer needs to know. Say... do you know how to catch a Pokémon? Want me to teach you?" The old man came closer and closer to Blue, touching her on the arm.

"Uhm... thank you... but I already know how... uhm... I need to go now, sorry..." she quickly untangled herself from the old man and increased her walking speed. _Whew, that was close..._

She then made her way to Route 22. It was a very mountainous region, but it had a straightforward path. Blue made sure that she stayed on the path - something about jagged rocks and steep cliffs made her scared.

"."

Blue stopped and looked around. Coal popped out of his Pokeball and got ready to protect his trainer, growling all the while, his tail swishing in annoyance.

"Keeeeeeeeeeeeeey! Mankeeeeeeyyyyy!" a small tan blur rushed by Blue, causing her skirt to rise. She blushed and put her hands on it to keep it down.

The blur attacked Coal and soon they were tumbleweed of orange and tan. Blue didn't want him to get hurt, so she called, "Coal! Use Ember! Get away from there!"

Unleashing a small but powerful flame from him mouth, Coal jumped away from his attacker. The blur sizzled and howled with pain before hopping backwards and glaring at his foe.

"Maaaaannnnnkkkkeeeeyyy..." it growled. The Pokémon's body had messy white fur, while its ears, appendages and tail were tipped with brown. It snorted through its small snout.

"Boy, he looks... ferocious... Coal, please be careful!" cried Blue, fearful for her Pokémon and nervous about the new threat.

Coal was about to take another step forward and take on the creature, but Sting popped out from her Pokeball and in front of Coal. He hesitated but let her pass.

The Mankey roared and attacked Sting, scoring a direct hit to her head. She rolled backwards and struggled to get up, her little legs moving slowly. He attacked again, and this time Sting moved her head and jabbed her attacker in the side. Gasping in pain, he stepped back.

"Sting... be careful! Use String Shot! Slow him down... we need to get away..."

Sting wrapped her foe up in silk, making him unable to move. Sting jabbed at him again with her stinger; however she accidentally cut a hole in the fine silk.

The Mankey took the opportunity to get his arm free and whack her once more, sending her flying across the field. The creature was strong for its small size.

"Sting?" Blue called, her voice uncertain. She walked over to her fallen Pokémon. "Are you okay, Sting?" She shook her, but the Sting didn't move. It was as if a bolt of lightning went through Blues' heart - she gasped and fell backward.

Coal saw what was going on and was immediately enraged. He didn't know Sting for very long, but he certainly was going to avenge his fallen comrades' death. He jumped at the Mankey and Scratched at him, but he only moved away, snorting with glee. The creature seemed to enjoy tormenting him.

"Sting..." Blue looked to the sky: it was spinning. She closed her eyes and through the darkness she heard Stings' last cry of pain. Blue opened her eyes again. _You can't be gone... You... can't be... We didn't even... Sting..._ Blue had a tear in her eye as she stood up and walked her to her bag.

"You..." she said, her voice small but furious, reached over and took out a Pokeball.

Coal was still trying to get a Scratch in, but his opponent was too fast.

"Why did you...? We didn't do anything..." Blue stood up and turned around, grasping the Pokeball tightly. Pretty soon her first started to shake.

The Mankey Scratched Coal across the face, leaving a gash and causing him to bleed. Coal growled with anger and retaliated by using Ember, scorching the Mankeys' fur. "MANKEYYYYY!"

"WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?" Blue threw the ball as hard as she could at the Pokémon, who was in the process of delivering a fatal blow to her beloved Charmander. It hit the Mankey right in the middle of its eyes, fell to the ground and pinged once.

She had caught it.


	9. Part Six

She had caught it. She had caught the monster that killed Sting.

Blue stared at the Pokeball on the ground, her thoughts muddled. She frowned, wiped a tear from her eye, and walked over to where Sting lay. Coal was by her lifeless form, closing Sting's eyes one last time, but not before Blue looked into her late Pokemons' eyes.

That stare.

_Oh god, that stare! _Blue shuddered. That last look into Sting's eyes moved something from within Blue. Stings' eyes were compounded, as all bugs' eyes are, but this was different. Within her eyes was a life, a thing, that moved within it. Blue had caught a glimpse of that something exiting Stings' eyes.

Blue shut her eyes and shook her head, trying to rid herself of that image. Instantly the vision of Stings' last moment and stare popped into her head. A giant, dying eyeball took up the entirety of her minds' eye view. Blood pounded in her ears.

Blue jerked her eyes open, Coal now looking at her with concern. "Char?"

She had to look away, her brows furrowed. She frowned in the direction of her Pokeball that was on the ground before kneeling beside Sting, being careful not to look at her face. She took Stings' Pokeball out from the strap of her bag and placed it against Sting. A flash of light brought the fallen Pokemon back into its 'home'. Blue pet Coal on the head once and stood up.

Walking to the monsters' Pokeball, Blue grew more hesitant. _Would I really keep Sting's killer?_she wondered to herself. She bent over and picked it up and held it within her hands. Coal was by her side again, forever Blue's loyal guardian, and he was growling at the ball within her hands.

"You're a killer, you're a monster," she began, looking at the Pokeball. "I didn't even have a chance to be with Sting, and yet you..." Blue had to sigh. "You're coming with us and your name is Don. Seems fitting..."

Blue tossed all of her Pokeballs on the ground, releasing all of her Pokemon. Bolt and Pudge shook themselves and seemed very happy to be free. Blue also released her new Pokémon, Don, but with much chagrin. The newly released Mankey yowled in anger, but the mighty little Charmander spat a small flame at him.

"Stop fighting." Blue's fists were clenched and she grit her teeth. Her tone of voice was one of struggling control. "We are all a team now. Sting is gone... but... As someone once told me, we have to move on. That's the only way we can get... stronger."

Her Pokemon looked from one another, but they all ignored Don the Mankey. He was off to the side of the group.

"So we're going to train now... All of us. Let's go."

It took awhile, but Blue's Pokemon eventually got to level 10, according to her Pokedex. All of them were becoming a little more confident in themselves, with the exception of Don. He followed orders, however he did so grudgingly. Blue knew that he was a proud Pokemon, and that he most likely hated every minute that he was her Pokemon. All the while, she had said nothing, her face revealing nothing.

It was the next morning when her team finished her training. She had rented a room for the night at the Pokemon Center, who were more than willing to share whatever space they had with her. Blue had come to really enjoy spending her free time at the Center, but she knew that she had to press on. She decided to finish exploring the rest of Route 22 before moving forward into Viridian Forest.

As she passed the spot where Sting was slain, Blue averted her eyes and kept closer to Coal. He had taken to being outside of his Pokeball and being by her side, and Blue felt comfort in that. He was really starting to grow on her, and she felt her heart soften for the first time in years.

She passed through a small gate that seemed to be overgrown by tall grass. At second glance, Blue noticed that the grass had been parted as if it had been used recently. She shrugged it off and continued forward. Then, all of a sudden, she heard a voice...

"Hey! Blue!"

She squinted her eyes. The sun was really shining and Blue had to cover her eyes with her hands. The person calling to her had a guys' voice. It sounded like Gary.

"You can forget about going to the Pokemon League!"

"This is the way to the Pokémon League?" Blue asked, honestly not knowing the answer.

Gary had walked closer and stood within five feet of her. He smirked and ran a hand nonchalantly through his hair. "Yeah. But since you're here... Yesterday was a fluke. Let me see if your Pokemon got stronger!" He grabbed a Pokeball out of his belt roughly and eyed her Charmander before tossing the ball out in front of him. A Pidgey was released from its Pokeball.

Coal immediately seemed raring to go, so Blue let him. She trusted his decision to go out, but at the same time she feared for his safety now more than ever. She couldn't lose him, too.

The Charmander growled at his opponent. The foe Pudgy flapped its wings in anticipation.

Blue eyed Gary warily as he glared at her. The silence lasted for a minute until Gary ordered, "Use Sand Attack! Get him in the eyes!" The Pidgey flapped its wings again, this time loosening up all of the dirt that was on the ground and sent it hurtling towards Coal's eyes. Coal tried to dodge, but was unsuccessful: he was blinded.

Blue watched as her Pokemon struggled to clear his eyes from the sand - the attack had left the sand hanging above the ground like a cloud. "Use Ember!" Coal, still rubbing his eyes, released a flame at his opponent, scoring a hit.

Gary's Pidgey shook off most of the attack, but its feathers were singed. It was Burned. "Feh. Pidgey use Gust!" The bird flew around once, twice, all the while flapping its tiny wings. A small but powerful gust of wind was aimed directly at Coal.

"Use Ember again!" Blue cried, hoping that Coals' flames could dissipate the wind.

Coal, the sand now out of his eyes, released another jet of flame at his opponent. The attack worked somewhat: some of the flames did reach the target, however some of the wind scored a direct hit on Coal. Both Pokemon were knocked backward.

Coal was the first to recover. He growled and jumped into the air just as Blue said, "Scratch!"

Gary frowned and watched his Pokemon get up slowly. "Get up! Move it!" he said angrily, but it was too late.

Coal had hit his mark, but avoided killing the bird. He had to show mercy; he was no Mankey.

"Grr..." Gary was angry as he returned his Pokemon and brought out another. "Squirtle, you're up!"

"Coal, good job; get back now..." Blue also recalled her Pokemon. She looked into her bag and located Bolt's Pokeball. "You can do it, Bolt!" she said, tossing the ball onto the ground.

Bolt the Pikachu let loose small sparks of electricity from her cheeks - she was excited for the match. Squirtle was sent out at the same time as she, and immediately went to Tackle his opponent. He did not want to take any chances.

"Even with a type advantage, you won't be able to defeat Squirtle." Gary said cockily, hiding his anger. "Get it!"

Still running towards his opponent, he jumped and retracted into his shell. "Jump, Bolt! Thundershock!" Blue cried. She knew her Pikachu has poor defenses, and if that attack hit, Bolt would be badly hurt.

"Pika... CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Bolt jumped out of the way and released the electricity from within the pouches on her cheeks. The attack went straight to her opponent, shocking it thoroughly.

"Fuck! Squirtle, move!" Gary put his hands on his head, forcefully grabbing his hair. His face was slightly turning red.

Squirtle's shell bounced off the ground when it landed, and it was sizzling. Smoke wafted from within the shell, and he eventually got back out. Blue was scared - had her Pokémon killed the turtle? she thought.

Her fears were uncalled for, however. Squirtle coughed and attempted to get up, looking back at his trainer with apologetic eyes. Gary clenched his jaw and returned his defeated Pokémon to its Pokeball.

Without a word, he walked past Blue, shoved a handful of cash into her chest, and walked away.

Blue was glad that she won, but felt sorry for his Squirtle. The look on its face when it faced its angry trainer was heartbreaking. She hugged both Coal and Bolt and congratulated them on their victory. With nothing more to see on this route, Blue went back to the Pokémon Center to rest.

* * *

I can't believe that I lost. Twice, for fucks' sake! That fucking Charmander and that stupid Pikachu... who was she, to show me up?

I walked away from the battlefield, my face red. My firsts were clenched tightly against my palms - if I didn't get out of there soon, I would have punched the nose right off of that bitch. "That bitch... the next time I see her, I'll show her who the loser is..."

On my way to Viridian City, I walked by some random people, forcing them out of the way. I'm the most important person. Don't get in my way. I rammed into a guy who wasn't paying attention, and knocked him to the ground. I gazed at the man, uncaring, and kicked him in the ribs, which caused him to wheeze and cough up blood. I walked on.

The Pokemon Center was cool, just the perfect temperature. There was no-one inside, which was just how I wanted it. I wasn't in the mood to deal with people, not even the I'm-always-so-fucking-chipper Nurse Joy, so I walked up to the counter and slammed the Pokeballs on the counter.

"Get them healed. NOW!" I glanced away, not even looking at the nurse and her fat tub of lard of a Pokemon. A man walked inside, his hands in his pockets. His shoulder-length red hair was striking - it wasn't a hair color commonly seen in Kanto.

He strode in with his hands in his pockets. An air of upper class-ness seemed to surround him. I disliked the guy instantly. Who the fuck gave him the right to walk around like he owned the place? I scowled when he looked at me, a curious expression on his face. He proceeded to walk over.

"I have some information that you may be interested in. Follow me into room three when you're finished here." Hands in his pockets, the guy walked away.


	10. Part Seven

I was still frustrated when Nurse Joy handed me back my Pokemon. I glanced in the direction where the guy from earlier spoke to me and curled my lip. I was in no mood to deal with anyone, however the mention of 'information' had my interest. What information could this guy have? I walked towards the room where the mysterious guy was waiting.

"Ah, I am glad you made it." He was sitting in a leather couch, his left leg propped over his right and his arms draped over the top. As soon as I walked in, however, he stood up and fixed his expensive-looking charcoal grey suit. "Your Pokemon are doing well?"

I said nothing and instead kept staring at him. That hair was either a flaunt of power or natural. Whatever the case, it was getting on my nerves. I crossed my arms. "I came here for information."

The guy looked a little older than me, perhaps by a year or two. He grabbed a glass of water and took a sip before setting it down. "Naturally. Information certainly has a way of drawing people in. It has come to my understanding that you have acquired a certain device from your grandfather."

"I have." I refused to say anything more.

The manner in which the guy spoke seemed cool, collected, rehearsed. "Now, now Mr. Oak. You have no need to be defensive. The device you have is invaluable to my organizations' research. Tell me: how many types of Pokemon are there?"

"Over 100."

"That's such a large number, wouldn't you think? The device your grandfather - Professor Oak - gave you is important to our research because it collects data based on the number of Pokemon you catch. Is this not correct?"

"What's your point? Who are you, anyway?"

"My name is Silver. My 'point' is that your device is what my organization has been looking for. Our goal can only be reached with the help of this device."

I sat down on the couch and narrowed my eyes. "If you need one so badly, then get one yourself or take it from Blue."

Silver was in the middle of taking a sip of water before pausing and turning towards me. "Blue? Who is this 'Blue'?"

"She's the other person who Gramps gave the Pokedex to. Just take it from her," I said with malice. Memories of the earlier battle popped into my head, causing me to frown.

Silver paused, his eyes downcast and he seemed to be concentrating. He looked back at me. "I take it that you dislike Blue."

"'Dislike'? 'DISLIKE'? Oh, shit, you're good!" I said with a sarcastic laugh. "First that cunt beats me in front of Gramps, and then she has the nerve to fry my Squirtle with a fucking Pikachu. And now you're here, for whatever fucking reason, to bore me with so-called _VALUABLE_information. And what did it turn out to be? ASKING ABOUT A DUMB POKEDEX." I stood up and started to walk out of the room, but Silver grabbed my arm.

"I see that you desire power in order to get revenge on Blue. My organization can give you that power."

I glared at him. "It's not just revenge that I'm after. I'm after the Championship. Lance will bow before me!"

Silver gave the slightest of smiles. "Mr. Oak, the Championship is as good as yours. Just say the word and we will provide you with whatever you require. In return, we ask you to gather as much data as you can about Pokemon."

"Deal." Silver let go of my arm and I walked out of the room smirking. _Victory will be mine!_

* * *

Silver watched as the hot-tempered boy strode out of the room, a light smile on his lips. He ran a hand through his long red hair before reaching into his breast pocket for a slim black cell phone, the back of which was emblazoned with a red letter 'R'.

"This is Hawk." he stated, going to the window and peering through the blinds. Gary was outside and hit a tree with his fist. By the looks of it, he had hurt his hand. "The worm is on the hook."

**"Excellent,"** came a man's disguised voice through the speakers. **"Keep a close eye on him."**

Silver nodded before replying, "There also appears to be another player. The worm appears to hold a grudge against a certain 'Blue' character. This person also holds another device from Professor Oak: a Pokedex."

**"..."** From the speakers came a crackling noise and a strange sound. Silver couldn't make it out, but a Pokemon with sensitive ears could make out the sound of breath catching in the persons' throat.** "Keep watch,"** was all the person said before a 'click' was heard - the sound of the mysterious person hanging up.

Silver looked at his phone and frowned.

* * *

Blue was exhausted as she collapsed in her rented bed at the Pokemon Center. It was comfortable, more comfortable than her bed at home. She sighed and wiped the tears from her cheeks before closing her eyes and falling asleep. Coal the Charmander cuddled by her side, providing her with warmth. Her other Pokemon were in their balls, because League regulations stated that only one Pokemon may be outside of their balls at one time unless in battle or in an emergency.

She awoke the next morning from a dreamless sleep, and a little well rested. Her face was red and puffy from crying the night before. Stretching, she went to the bathroom and freshened up. An hour later, she was ready to go, her pack was all set. She went to the Pokemart to buy some Potions and Antidotes, because she had heard that Viridian Forest was filled with poisonous bugs. She was lucky to have run into a Pikachu on her first few steps in.

Walking into Viridian Forest, Blue quickly realized that she had nothing to fear. Her Pokemon were strong enough to beat even the Bug Trainers' Pokemon with no fear or worry. Pudge, Bolt and Coal were enjoying themselves and having fun, but Don was serious in his training, severely wounding any opponent that got into his path. It wasn't long before Blue made it out of Viridian Forest and into the next route. To her disappointment, the route following Viridian Forest was a continuation of Route 2, and therefore she was not allowed another catch.

Further ahead, Blue saw some buildings. She checked her map: she had arrived in Pewter City. Blue was nervous as she went to the Pokemon Center, and saw the same Nurse Joy working behind the counter as the one in Viridian City. "Hey again, Nurse Joy..." Blue started to say, but stopped when she noticed something was different. Blue figured it was the shape of her eyes.

"Welcome trainer! May I heal your Pokemon?" the nurse smiled and tilted her head. "You must have mistaken me for my cousin. That's alright - all rookie trainers think we're the same person."

"Uhm, I heard about the Gym Leader here... can you tell me anything about him?" Blue asked, holding Coal in her arms as she handed Nurse Joy the rest of her Pokeballs.

"The Gym Leader uses 'rock-hard determination and inner strength' as his training style, and Rock Pokemon as his specialty," said a voice from behind her.

Blue turned around and saw the same boy from the other day. He seemed as confident as ever. _Brock. Brock was his name! _"Hi, Brock," Blue said softly. "So... the Gym Leader uses Rock-types?"

"That's correct." He grinned widely at her and crossed his arms. "Do you plan on challenging him, in hopes of defeating him in order to gain a Pokemon League Badge? To eventually challenge the Elite Four? To become the Champion?" Brock seemed to smile even wider as he asked each of these questions.

"Well... I might," Blue held onto Coal a little tighter. "I don't know what I should do. I don't even know the Leaders' name or anything..."

"Here you go, miss." Nurse Joy handed Blue back her Pokemon.

Brock eyed the number of Pokeballs that the girl was handed. "So, you've got four Pokemon. If you've got what it takes, come to the Gym and challenge the Leader. I'll be there." Brock turned around and left the building, winking at a pink-haired girl on his way out. She giggled loudly and blushed.

Blue watched him as he left, wondering how his hair stayed perfectly spiky. She walked outside and let all of her Pokemon out of their Pokeballs, figuring that it would only take a second. "Okay, guys..." she said, looking at each of her Pokemon. Bolt, Pudge, Coal and Don. "I think... we should challenge the Gym... for a Badge. I think... we should test ourselves. Bolt, Pudge, I don't think that you'd last very long against Rock-types... I think they're part Ground as well? I... don't want to take any chances. Coal... Don... I believe in you."

Blue stood up and returned her Pokemon to their balls. _To test our strength... my strength..._ She asked for directions to the Gym, and headed straight towards it. _Inner strength and determination..._


	11. Part Eight

Blue made it to Pewter City Gym around noon. It was only a few minutes away from the Pokemon Center - it had to be, for obvious reasons. She was nervous, her palms sweating lightly. This was it. _What will I do if I lose?_ she asked herself. Blue then shook her head. _No... I can't lose... I have to believe..._ As if on cue of her uncertainty, her loyal Charmander released himself from his Pokeball and placed his small clawed paw on her leg. She glanced down at him and gave a slight smile.

Blue stood in front of the frosted sliding glass double doors and stared at the Pokeball logo. She then took a deep breath, opened the door, and walked inside. A man in a white shirt and navy pants was standing next to a Rhydon statue, reading a book. When Blue walked in, his raised his eyes and closed it.

"Greetings, challenger! Do you want to know what it takes to become a pro? I'm no trainer, but I can take you to the top!" The man was hopeful as he asked Blue this.

"Uhm... okay..." Blue wasn't quite sure to make of the man. She wasn't sure if he was an official or just some random guy.

"Let's get started, then! The Gym Leader here uses Rock-types! You picked... Charmander? You will have a hard time with him, then!" He paused to clap her on the back and push her through the second set of doors. "Well, good luck!"

"Oof!" Blue landed on her hands and knees. She stood up and brushed the dirt off of her knees. Coal snorted smoked out of his nostrils at the man.

_Wait a minute, dirt?_ Blue quickly looked at her surroundings. Boulders, rocks and dirt were everywhere and the lighting was dim. The room was gigantic - _is the Gym really that big?_ - and in the middle was a small arena, littered with a few large rocks. Blue's eyes widened and her mouth was open.

"Impressed?" A voice came from the uppermost right hand corner of the room. A spotlight shone on the person who spoke, but the glare made it impossible for Blue to make out who it was. The light slowly moved down the hill that made up each of the corners, until it eventually stopped in the middle of the arena.

Blue could see who it was more clearly now, the rough spiky hair and small narrow eyes were unique. "You're... the Gym Leader...?" she whispered.

"Hm? That's correct, I am the Gym Leader of Pewter City!" Brock said, cocking his head to the side and looking at her curiously.

She walked towards him. "I didn't know..." She looked around the room again. "And yes... this place is very impressive. Are we supposed to battle here?"

"You're right again." Brock smiled and raised his arms wide and spun around. "This here is my playground - my Pokemon and I built everything from scratch. Pretty recently, actually."

"May I ask what happened?"

He turned to face Blue again, looking rather serious. "A few years ago, back when I first became the Gym Leader here, a young girl challenged me. She couldn't have been more than ten years old! Seeing her sent shivers down my spine, and even my Onix trembled. I've been scared, sure, but this... this was different." He frowned, his eyebrows furrowing as he glared at the ground. He looked at Blue again. "I didn't stand a chance. My Gym, my brand new Gym! Gone! The insides, all tore to pieces. And the worst thing? _She used Poison-types!_ Poison is supposed to be weak against Rock/Ground! I don't understand it..."

Blue felt sorry for Brock and bit her lip. She had no idea what he was talking about, or who the mysterious trainer was, but if a confident guy like Brock was scared, she should be, too. She stepped closer to her Charmander without noticing what she was doing.

"It's a good thing she's out of the country, far, far away..." Brock sighed and shook his head before smiling. "Anyway! This isn't what you came here for. I bet you're eager to face me! You probably shouldn't use your Charmander if you know what's good for you."

Coal puffed himself up. "Charmander! Char!"

Brock grinned. "Nice try. May I see your Trainer Card?"

"Oh... this?" Blue rummaged through her bag and found her wallet. She pulled her Trainer Card out and handed it to Brock.

"Hmm... a Nuzlocker? I see." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small yellow device. On it was a small Pokeball logo with 'Silph Co.' on the back. He scanned it over the back of her card.

Beep! went the machine.

Blue looked at the machine curiously.

Brock took notice and said casually, "This machine scans the chosen Nuzlocker's Trainer Card to make sure that they are following the rules. The beep you just heard means that you are in the clear." He put the device back into his pocket and handed Blue back her card.

"Normally," he began, "this introduction wouldn't have lasted this long. Of course, since this is your first gym, formalities are in order. If you happen to defeat me and earn the Boulderbadge, you'll hand your Card over to the Gym Leaders and they will scan it like so.

Now that THAT is out of the way... let us begin." Brock hopped backwards until he was twelve feet away from Blue and on the other end of the arena.

Coal once again puffed himself up and spat a small flame out of his mouth. He swished his tail and had a sparkle in his eyes.

"Gym Leader Brock... I ch-challenge you..." Blue stuttered, her heart fluttering. She couldn't believe how quickly Brock changed the subject.

"I accept your challenge! Geodude, go!" Brock tossed his Pokeball onto the ground, and in a flash, a rugged rock floated above the ground.

"Geo!" it cried, opening its eyes and stretched its rocky arms. It eyed Blue and her Pokemon.

"Uhm... let's see... _It can't be Pudge or Bolt..._ I choose you, Don...!" Blue grabbed his Pokeball and tossed it in front of her.

The Mankey tore free from his ball and let out a battle howl. His eyes flashed red as he saw his opponent. He howled again and rushed his foe, clobbering him with a brutal Karate Chop to the head, slicing the Pokemon in two.

Don the Mankey hopped up and down in glee, pounding his fists onto the floor. "Keeeeee keeeekeeekeee!" Don sounded almost as if he were laughing.

Blue was horrified. Even though her Mankey killed the Pokemon, she herself felt as if she was responsible.

Brock frowned. "I know that Mankey..." he said, recalling his slain Pokemon to its ball. He reached into his vest and pulled out a single Pokeball. "As the first Gym Leader, I am required to own only two Pokemon. As such, I choose you, Onix!"

Tossing the ball into the air, the ball popped open, releasing a giant stone serpent. The horn on the top of its head must have been at least five feet long. "Oooooooooogh," it growled. Its voice was deep and it rumbled the floor slightly. It eyed the Mankey in front of him and slammed its rocky tail on the ground.

"Let's see your Mankey get through him."

"Don... use Low Kick..." Blue said quietly, fearing what may happen to the Onix. She didn't want it to be killed like the Geodude before him.

The Mankey stood where he was, and from the corner of his eye looked at Blue, an angry expression on its face. "Maaaaaaaaaankeeyyyyyyy!" he cried in a high pitched wail as he rushed the Onix.

"Pummel him with your Rock Throw, Onix!" Brock ordered his Pokemon, pointing at the Mankey.

"Ooooooogh," the giant serpent rumbled again, slamming his tail on the ground with even more force. The ground shook, and Mankey attempted to keep his balance.

Blue, on the other hand, wasn't expecting the force of the impact at Onix launched his attack. She fell to the floor and held herself until the shaking stopped. Coal held onto his trainer, scared out of his mind.

Don the Mankey looked left, looked right, but never saw the attack. He grinned and prepared himself for another Low Kick, but he stopped when he heard something. Onix stared at his foe as if he were bored and quickly stole a glance at the ceiling.

Don saw Onix look and did the same. Soft dirt was crumbling from the ceiling. Suddenly, a large crack appeared on the stalactites above him. His eyes widened. Onix took his chance and slammed the ground again, causing the stalactites to loosen up and crash to the floor.

Don rushed out of the way, but it was too late. The giant stalactites crushed him underneath their weight like a military boot crushing a Durant.

A pool of blood soon seeped out of the rubble.

Blue stood up and gasped, holding her hand over her mouth. "No..." she whispered. "Not... not another one..." she sobbed and fell to her knees.

Coal took his chance and ran onto the field, growling at the Onix viciously.

Once again, the giant stone serpent looked bored.

"You better watch your Charmander. Or do you want him to die as well? Onix shows no mercy on young trainers and their stupid Pokemon," Brock called. _Rookies..._

Blue's eyes were glassy as she wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Coal... do it... please, for him... for Sting..."

Coal nodded and jumped at the Onix, who didn't bother to budge.

"Metal claw..." Blue said as Coal's front claws shone a metallic silver.

"Chaaaaaaaarrr... maaaaaan... deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeer!" he cried as he flew through the air, slashing at Onixs' hide.

Onix and Brock noticed what was happening too late. "What?!"

Coal viciously clawed at his foe, beating him down as Don did to the late Geodude. Onix fell to the floor and each rocky segment of his body unhinged themselves.

He spat fire at the rocky Pokemon. He was sweating and panting with anger.

The Charmander clambered off of the rocky rubble and went back to his trainer, putting his head underneath her arm and climbing onto her lap.

Blue sobbed again.


	12. Part Nine

Brock recalled his fallen Onix, the pieces of its body returning in a flash of red light. He was used to people defeating him with a Bulbasaur or a Squirtle, but was surprised that the small Charmander guarding its trainer was able to defeat him. _Well, _he thought, _it's a good thing I'm not allowed to use my personal Pokemon in a Gym Leader match._

"Congratulations, Blue." Brock said slowly, walking towards her, being careful to avoid stepping into the pool of blood around the large rubble where the Mankey lay buried. "You've just defeated your very first Gym. That Charmander of yours is pretty powerful, despite being so young."

Blue raised her head and stopped petting Coal. Her eyes were red and puffy and there were dried tearstains on her cheeks. The girl said nothing and looked back to the floor, her mouth tipped into a frown.

Brock sighed and kneeled next to her. "Was this your first loss?"

"No..." A whisper was all she could manage. Coal softly pet her hair.

"That Mankey was no ordinary Mankey. I've seen it wreck havoc on the outskirts of Viridian City. It's vicious. You must be a pretty skilled trainer to catch it." Brock picked up her hat and placed it on her head and past her eyes. Blue grumbled, and he smirked, putting her hat back in its rightful place.

"Killed..." Blue stopped and swallowed. A big lump was in her throat.

"What was that?"

"He killed... Sting." Blue looked at Brock, her light blue eyes filled with tears. "I didn't even get a chance... I didn't even get a chance to get to know her..."

Brock was silent as she let the girl sob once more. After a few minutes, Blue ran out of tears and was softly sniffing. "Listen, I know it's tough, but you have to be strong." He lifted her chin up with his hand. Her eyes shone like sapphires. "You shouldn't beat yourself up for what happened here today. That Mankey... Don, was it? He lived to fight."

Blue looked long and hard at Brock's face. She was certain that he was telling the truth. Then she looked at Coal, who was lying next to her, his tail wrapped around her backside. Brock removed his hand from her chin and straightened himself, holding out a hand to her.

She grabbed his hand and noticed that it was strong as he hoisted her up. He reached into his vest and brought out a small metal badge. He held it up to the light, and it shone brilliantly. "This is the Boulderbadge. With it, your Pokemon become more powerful. It also allows you to use the move Flash out of battle." He handed Blue the badge, and she placed it in a small light blue case.

"Thank you..." she murmured.

"You can have this, too. It's TM39: Rock Tomb. A TM can only be used once, so choose who you give it to carefully." He paused and looked at Blue. To him, she seemed to carry herself a little more differently than she had when he first met her in Viridian City. "You know... there are all kinds of Trainers in this huge world of ours. You appear to be very gifted as a Pokemon Trainer."

Blue blushed and shuffled her feet. "I'm not gifted," she said. "I... I did awfully back there. My Pokemon... went wild and killed your Geodude... And Coal... he did the same!"

"Things like that happen."

Blue was caught off guard. "What?"

"It happens! Just like people, Pokemon die all the time. They willingly give their lives for the trainers and love them unconditionally, regardless if that person is 'good' or 'bad' in character." Brock was getting impatient. "You're gifted because you caught a Pokemon who is, for all purposes, a 'monster'. You caught him and YOU TRAINED HIM. I saw him look at you during the battle! If it were any other Trainer, he would have run away, never to return. But he stayed."

Brock grabbed both of Blue's shoulders and stared at her. "Do you understand? He _stayed_." He let her go with a light push. "Let me make a suggestion to you. Go to the Gym in Cerulean City. Test your abilities. Then come back and tell me you're not gifted."

Blue hesitated as she listened to Brock. Then it hit her: he was right. Pokemon, people, everyone dies eventually. She knew that Coal would be with her through thick and thin, and that her other Pokemon would do the same. They were a team.

"You're right."

* * *

Two hours later, Blue was sitting on a bench inside of a Pokemon Center just outside of Mount Moon, reorganizing her bag. _Man, it's gotten messy,_ she thought to herself, sticking her tongue in her cheek. Her trusty Pokemon was sitting on the floor, leaning against the bench. She continued on for a few more minutes. _And there's the last of it!_

"C'mon, Coal, let's go back to Route 3. I thought I saw a patch of grass back there..."

She backtracked to Route 3 and walked inside, thinking about the strange trainers she saw. Not only did they say the strangest things, but she could have sworn she saw each of them flicker when she defeated them, but Blue shook it off, thinking it was a figment of her imagination.

Blue wandered through the grass with Coal scurrying right behind her, humming. Just then, a small blue Pokemon entered her line of sight. The Pokemon saw Blue and froze. "Why hello there..." she cooed. The Pokemon's small horns trembled slightly.

Coal caught up to his trainer and saw the frightened Pokemon. He clucked and made a shooing motion with his small paws. Blue took a few steps backwards. Coal turned back to the Pokemon, who gave a quiet "Nido..." and started talking to it in Pokespeak.

The Pokemon, over the course of a few minutes, gradually became less scared and looked over to Blue. It seemed interested in her. It walked over to Blue, sniffed her shoe and started nibbling on it, content.

Blue remained silent and noticed Coal nodding at her. She knelt down, patted the small Pokemon on the head once, and placed a Pokeball on its snout.

Ding! The Pokemon was caught. "NIDORAN FEMALE," the Pokedex stated. "LEVEL THREE. LONELY NATURE."

"Such a scared little girl... My little Birdie. Coal," she said, smiling at him. "You're such a good Pokemon."

Coal looked smug and puffed himself up.

* * *

A man dressed in all black briskly walked around the inside of Mount Moon. A black cap was on his head, his scarlet hair sticking out underneath. He put on a pair of sunglasses to hide his eyes.

As he walked, he looked on either side of him, searching for something. At last, he saw what he was looking for. He came to the edge of a small cliff and looked at the giant white machine that was somehow rigged into its wall. He leaped off the cliff, using its rugged wall to keep his balance and he slid down it.

Reaching the bottom, he quickly pat himself down and inspected the machine. There were many brightly-colored buttons and monitors of all sizes. One of the monitors was beeping slowly: 1... ... ... ... 2... ... ... ...

"You! Grunt! What are you doing over there!" A voice shouted at him.

The man froze, then turned around and raised his hands apologetically. "Who, me?"

The voice who shouted at him was a man who wore the exact same outfit, however with some minor modifications. His sleeves had two red bands across them. He was soon joined by a thicker man, whose shirt was ripped in the chest, revealing muscular pecs. The red Rs on their chests reflected off of the artificial light of the white machine. "Yes, you. Grunts aren't allowed near the Capacitor."

"Archer sent me over here to see what the holdup was," the scarlet-haired man lied.

"Archer sent you?" The man who spoke had his dark red hair slicked back.

His companion crossed his arms. His dark brown hair, feathery mustache and beard were cropped close to his face. "You can tell Archer to go fuck himself, because we're moving as quickly as we can. This fucking mountain has been screwing with the signal."

"Archie, it's not the mountains' fault. It's the electromagnetic field underneath the mountain that-"

"Oh for fuck's sake, Maxie! Face it: if this fucking mountain wasn't here, we'd have the right readings and be out of here. This whole mission would have been easier if it had been at the bottom of the ocean!" Archie stamped his foot.

"It would? Did you forget that the deep sea ocean floor has enough pressure to rupture even the most strongest of metals?" Maxie countered.

Archie opened his mouth, about to speak, but then closed it. He grunted his displeasure.

The scarlet-haired man took his cue to leave, silently slipping by the duo as they had their verbal disagreement.

* * *

"Wow, Birdie, you've gotten so big!" Blue said in awe at her Pokemon, who was now much bigger, her horns protruding even more. She stood on her hind legs and flexed her front claws. Birdie had evolved into a Nidorina.

All of Blue's Pokemon were out in front of her: Pudge, Bolt, Birdie and Coal. "I'm very impressed with all of you. We... experienced some tough times recently..." Blue referred to the Paras, who she had caught on her first attempt into Mount Moon named 'Shroom'. She had just lost him after five levels against a weaker Spearow. "But I promise I won't give up on you.

No matter what happens."


	13. Part Ten

The scarlet-haired man moved away from the Capacitor and towards another long, rocky tunnel. He climbed down some stairs and entered a large cavern. He took a quick look around before walking once more. A few minutes later, he heard some voices; immediately he slowed, crouched down, and tiptoed his way towards them.

"Ouch! Stupid Geodudes..." a woman irritably spoke.

"Will you be quiet? We'll be heard!" a gruff voice hissed to her.

The man's ears perked up, recognizing the voices. "Over here," he whispered to them.

"Hey," the woman said, adjusting her short dark blue hair out of her eyes.

"We'd have been here sooner, but klutz over here can't keep her balance worth a dime." the gruff voices' owner muttered, his purple eyes scanning over the other mans' shoulder.

The scarlet-haired man said nothing for a moment. The woman was very youthful looking for being in her mid-thirties, and the man seemed to be in his mid-forties. They both wore the same all-black outfit with the red R emblazoned on their chests. "Bulldog, Spaniel, what did you find?"

"Other than the occasional grunt? Nothing," Lynx replied, adjusting her hat.

"They seemed to be looking for something, but they weren't very chatty," Bulldog added, taking off the sunglasses that covered his eyes, and therefore his identity. His long, coarse orange hair was pulled back into a ponytail, the red highlights showing underneath. He frowned. "Did you find anything, Coug?"

"I happened to stumble across a giant white machine, something Maxie and Archie dubbed 'The Capacitor'," Cougar said concisely.

"Ooooh Maxie and Archie? Together?" giggled Spaniel.

"That's... strange," muttered Bulldog. "A 'Capacitor', huh?"

"Yes. The two are apparently working under Archer, who I believe is in charge of the operation here. I was just on my way to scout out more when the two of you showed up."

"Jackal was telling us about Archer when you left, remember?" Spaniel said. "You really shouldn't just run off like that!"

"Time was of the essence," he replied coolly.

"Always have to be the hero, don't you?"

"Spaniel," Bulldog hissed, "some other time. Coug, we'll be off to Vermillion. Good luck to you."

Cougar nodded and the pair took off, leaving him alone once more.

* * *

Cougar continued on, somewhat annoyed by the short interruption. Cougar had always been athletic, even as a boy, and strove to remain so. He was quick on his feet and could often be seen performing agility exercises, so it was of no surprise when he avoided a sleeping Geodude on his way to another part of the cave. Cougar found a hole in the floor, and went on his way deeper underground, expertly finding footholds on the steep wall.

"Hey - who are you? You shouldn't be in here!" a nasally voiced woman shouted.

Cougar's instincts kicked in as he flung himself into the wall and hid in the shadows. If the voice was talking to him, he thought, then they'd have a hard time finding him. _And if they decide to give me any trouble,_ he tapped his pocket, feeling the single Pokeball that was inside, _I'll give them something to be afraid of._

Cougar crouched down and inched towards the voice. It was to his advantage that there was a rocky ledge in which he could peer over and spy on the happenings below.

"Uhm... I'm trying to get through..." said a quiet, hesitant voice. A girl's voice.

"I bet you came to snoop!" the woman accused, releasing an Ekans from a Pokeball at her waist. "You're coming with me!"

From his spot on the ledge, Cougar could see the girl. She had a Charmander by her side and was biting her lip. She looked to be around 18, a few years younger than himself. He frowned and quickly took the Pokeball out of his pocket, enlarged it, and grasped it firmly.

He was just about to attack when the girls' Charmander blasted it with a fiery Ember attack, blackening the snake and causing it to fall over and writhe in pain. The Charmander glared at the woman in black. Cougar paused, waiting to see what the girl might do. Her Charmander wasn't as weak as he had originally thought.

"Please let me pass..." the girl pleaded.

"That's never going to happen - Sandshrew, go!" the woman grabbed another Pokeball and released her Pokemon.

"Charrrrr..." the fiery orange Pokemon growled, narrowing his eyes at his new opponent before glowing brightly and becoming larger.

Cougar couldn't help but smirk as the newly evolved Charmeleon admired its new body. He remembered when his Pokemon first evolved, how good it must have felt with its newfound power.

"Meeeeeeleon!" the larger red Pokemon growled, its voice no longer as high pitched and the flame on its tail glowing more brightly.

"Metal Claw," the girl said, as her newly-evolved Pokemon as it did as she commanded. The Sandshrew didn't stand a chance and fell next to its comrade.

"You think an evolution means anything?" the woman curled her upper lip in anger. "Think again! The other grunts will teach you your place!"

"I just want to get out of this cave," the girl explained, frowning.

Cougar pursed his lips and moved away from the ledge. _She's going to ruin everything,_he thought. He heard the woman shriek again to the girl and hurried to find a way to them. It wasn't that hard, as it just so happened that there was a ladder nearby. He walked towards them and put a hand on the woman's' shoulder.

"You leave the girl to me," he told the woman, eyeing the girl in front of him. She was rather cute and he couldn't help but stare at her brilliant blue eyes, but he had to remain unfazed. "I'll deal with her."

"It's about time you showed up! This little brat just assaulted the Pokemon I was given, and Archer is going to be pissed!" the woman spat on the ground and wrinkled her nose.

"Archer," Cougar started, "won't know a thing if you remain quiet. He won't even have to know she was here..."

* * *

Coal growled softly as the man talked about his trainer. Blue put her hand on him for comfort - she didn't know what to expect. Although she couldn't really see his face, the feeling she got from him was one of strength and authority. Blue didn't know what was going to happen, but she wasn't sure if her Pokemon were strong enough to defeat this mysterious man.

She gripped a little more firmly on Coal as he slowly stood in front of her.

The man eyed them both once more after the nasally-voiced woman left with a smirk.

"You shouldn't be here."


	14. Part Eleven

Blue was silent and tensed herself for what may happen. All she wanted was to get out of this cave, but people keep saying that she doesn't belong on Mt. Moon. She was an inexperienced Trainer, how else was she supposed to get to Cerulean? None of this made any sense to her.

"I just need to get to Cerulean..." she started, looking around her before returning her gaze to the man.

"You'd get there faster if you followed the signs," was the curt reply, to which Blue's Charmeleon growled at. "Things will go much smoother if you or your Pokemon don't do anything stupid."

Blue frowned, not trusting this man for a minute. She had spotted other people wearing the exact same outfit - or rather, uniform, as it was becoming clearer. Black pants, black hat, and a black shirt with a big red R emblazoned on the front. But this man, he was wearing big black sunglasses. _Why wear sunglasses in a cave?_

The scarlet-haired man could tell that she was studying him, so he took a step forward. Blue was startled by his sudden movement and tripped trying to move backwards and away from him. "Leave me alone!" she cried from the floor. Coal crouched beside her and attempted to growl menacingly, despite being scared.

He reached into his pocket and grabbed his Pokeball, threatening to release what was inside. Blue's eye widened and gasped lightly. "I can tell you're scared. Don't do anything stupid, and everything will be all right." He took another step towards her.

Blue covered her eyes with her arms but when no attack came, she peered through the gap in between her forearms. The man was stretching out his hand to help her up. She hesitantly looked at it before taking his hand.

An electric shock ran through her body.

A periwinkle-haired man in a white suit and black tie was talking on the phone when Maxie and Archie came before him. "I'll have to call you back," he said. "I believe some information has just come in." He snapped his cell phone closed and put it in his breast pocket before addressing the two. "Did you find out anything?"

"That's correct. The electromagnetic waves of this cave made it... difficult, to say the least. Nonetheless, we have made quite the discovery." Maxie smiled lightly as he turned to his brunette companion.

"Fucked up our equipment for th' most part, but I got it sorted out." Archie puffed himself up proudly and scratched his beard.

The man in the suit rubbed his hand on the bridge of his nose. "The information, if you will."

"We found that the electromagnetic waves found within this cave have the same frequency as the P.P." Maxie began.

The periwinkle-haired man looked attentively at him. "Are you sure?"

"Affirmative. The amount of energy we could harness from this cave will be more than adequate to power it."

Archie rubbed his beard again. "This was after we saw some grunt near the Capacitor. Jus' crusin', he says. Wearin' big ol' glasses an' shit. Don't think he could have seen anythin' from them."

"All of the grunts have their assignments. None of them are stationed near the Capacitor."

"You should keep better track of yer Grunts, Archer. Th' lack of discipline is-"

"Silence! I will not have you talk to me like that. I don't care what deal you have going with our Boss, but for now you are under MY orders, and that means you will follow them to the 'T'! Do I make myself clear?" Archer was becoming visibly angry, despite his attempts to remain calm.

"You must forgive Archie," Maxie interjected, elbowing his companion in the ribs. "His lack of respect for his superior shows how inexperienced and emotional he is. We shall do our best to find the culprit, and bring him to you."

Archer sighed and waved them off. "Get out of my sight."

Maxie took hold of Archie's arm and dragged him off. Despite being a large muscular man and angry, Maxie was his friend so he complied. "You better tell me that was all an act," he growled after they had walked a reasonable distance away from Archer.

"Of course it was. He won't be able to imagine how the energy will affect his precious P.P."

* * *

Blue let go of the man's hand after the initial jolt and looked at her hand. _What just happened?_

He looked as if he was lost in thought. "Hmm..." He looked at her in the eyes once before looking off into the distance from where he came. "If you wish to leave, you must follow me."

"How am I supposed to trust you? I don't even know you!" she shook her head. She couldn't run, her legs were frozen. Coal was helpless to help his trainer.

"I never asked you to. But if you refuse, then I will have no other choice but _force_ you to follow." He looked intently at her. "You better choose now, because you're running out of time here, and my patience is running thin."

Blue let loose a single tear from her eye, but quickly hid it as she rubbed her face nervously. She looked at her Pokemon, who stared straight back at her. "I guess... I have no other choice..."

"Good," he said, even before Blue finished speaking. "Don't fall behind."

* * *

Silver stared at the cell phone that was in his hand. He had just got done telling Archer that a certain grunt was to be promoted and be sent to Cerulean City for his assignment, and that said grunt was supposed to be working with a very valuable 'chess piece' for their organization. But these weren't his order, oh no. They were _His_.  
_  
Why would he bother with a measly grunt?_ Silver wondered, furious at the final decision. After all, he was the one who persuaded the 'piece' to go along with their cause. He, Silver, should be getting a lot of credit.

"But no, Father always has to do things his way," he muttered. "Why can't he see that I am fully capable of running us?" He kicked a small trashcan, knocking it over. Silver exhaled, trying to calm down and return into his normal, collected self. This was no time for him to let anger control him. This mission was too important.

A few minutes later, his cell phone rang, and Silver answered immediately. "What have you learned?"

"Maxie and Archie have confirmed what we've already guessed: the energy from Mount Moon will be perfect for our needs." said the voice on the other line.

"Excellent. Send a Fearow out to the island immediately - tell the scientists to bring all of their equipment. Whatever they need to transport, you figure it out. Tell those goons Maxie and Archie to meet me at The Spot tomorrow at four. They better not be late." With a 'click', Silver hung up the phone, delighted.

What his father wanted with those two he didn't know. All Silver knew was that Maxie was a landmass expert, and that Archie knew almost everything there was to know about the seas. Both were untrustworthy, and could potentially ruin his organizations' plans. _What is Father thinking?_

* * *

Blue was silent as she followed behind the scarlet-haired man, Coal right on her heels. So far he had done nothing to her, but Blue kept herself alert just in case. The fear of the unknown that was instilled upon her body was great, but since he hadn't tried to hurt her, she was safe for the moment. In all actuality, she had a suspicion that the man _scared_ everything away from him.

He glanced back at her from the corner of his eye before continuing on ahead. "Where are you taking me?"

He twitched his eye before shushing her, "If you know what's good for you, you'd be quiet."

In this tense moment, Blue felt a stab of annoyance and, for the first time, stubbornness. She was startled by her own sudden change of personality, but didn't shrink back. "At least tell me your name," she grumbled.

He stopped and turned to face her. Mouth open, he was about to say something when he was interrupted by the stamping of feet. "Move," he hissed, grabbing Coal's Pokeball at her waist and recalling him. He then pushed her against the wall and behind some rocks, stuffing Coal's Pokeball in her bag. He crouched with his back to her as he blocked her from view. A few men and women in white lab coats were rushing towards them, paperwork and maps in their hands.

_Towards the 'Capacitor'? _Cougar thought. They were certainly going in the right direction.

"That's right, you better move your asses! Archer's gonna beat you real good if you don't move fast enough!" said a woman's smug voice. "Weds, show that fool what happens when you don't hustle," she commanded towards her fierce-looking Beedrill.

Its long stingers were coated in deadly venom. It buzzed once in agreement before rushing at the scientist who had happened to trip. When he saw the giant bug coming, he yelped in fear and covered his head. But the Beedrill merely swooped over his head, missing him by a mile. "That will show you to be clumsy! NOW MOVE YOUR ASS!" she kicked him in the side, cackling in amusement.

Blue had closed her eyes shut and remained still as the woman and scientists ran past them. Cougar had been tense, but his instincts didn't lead him astray. He could feel the soft heat coming from the girl behind him, and he didn't enjoy babysitting. _This girl is more trouble than she's worth,_ he thought to himself, grimacing. _Getting into my head already..._

He got up, made sure the coast was clear, before moving on again. He had better lead her out of this cave as soon as he could - there was something going on here and he HAD to figure out what was going on. Cougar was positive that neither Spaniel nor Bulldog would know where the giant machine was located or what its purpose was.

He had walked a few steps before realizing that the girl wasn't behind him. "You've got to be kidding me..." he muttered, hurrying back to the place where he had last seen her.

Nothing.

She was gone, nowhere to be found.

Cougar threw up his hands and shook his head, annoyed.

* * *

Blue ran as fast as she could in the opposite direction in which her 'captor' had walked. She released Coal from his Pokeball as she ran, thankful for his familiar presence. "Something's going on here, Coal," she huffed, "but I don't know why." She stopped, panted, and allowed her breath to catch up with her. "I... I'm not sure if I want to know - all of these people wearing the same uniform; what does the 'R' even mean? And that man... he could have hurt me, Coal. He really could have. Just being near him... makes me feel..." she trailed off, not knowing how she felt.

She hurried on, frantically looking for a sign that would tell her the way out.

"Ho there, little lady! Are you lost?" said a jovial voice.

"Please... I need to get out of here... I've been... running, running so much..." she coughed and wheezed, unable to get adequate air into her lungs.

"Woah there, easy. Let ol' George help you, miss." The man had a stout belly, a thick beard, and was covered head to toe in dirt. Overall, he seemed like a sincere, caring man. He placed his hand on her shoulder tenderly. "The exit isn't too far from here - jus' about a mile or so over yonder. Let ol' George escort you there, little lady. A lass like you shouldn't be wandering through a cave all alone!"

Ten minutes later, Blue found herself outside of Mount Moon, with the help of George. He had left after she gave exuberant thanks and apologies before releasing all of her Pokemon so they could get some fresh air before they carried on. Blue's stomach growled, and she realized that she hadn't eaten in quite some time.

Birdie, Bolt and Pudge all looked overjoyed at being out of their Pokeballs. Pudge chirped happily and flew into the air, swooping and diving as fast as a little Pidgey could. Suddenly, in a flash of light, she became much larger, the feathers on her body becoming more pristine. "Pidgeotto!" she chirped again, flapping her wings in glee.

"You've... you've all grown so much. Coal, Birdie, Pudge... you've all evolved and have gotten so big and strong," Blue smiled gently at her Pokemon. Bolt the Pikachu released a few sparks from her cheeks, somewhat annoyed. "Oh, Bolt, how could I forget you? You're my little fighter."

A Charmeleon, Nidorina, Pikachu and Pidgeotto made up her team - Blue had never thought she'd have this many, nor did she ever think that she'd become a trainer in the first place. _It's only been a few days... But I think I've made some progress. I can't give up, not now, not after what's happened._


	15. Part Twelve

The man ran his hand through his light brown hair as he talked on the phone, his lips turned into a slight smirk. I couldn't help but frown. Why was I even here? That person... Silver, was it? He had promised power, revenge, and hasn't even delivered. _Tch, what a waste of my time..._

"That should do it," said the man, putting his cell phone away and placing a hat on his head. "She was spotted entering Cerulean City yesterday and intends on heading this way soon."

I narrowed my eyes and gave a tight smile. They had been telling me to show up at this spot for the past two days, waiting for her arrival. Maybe this time I'll actually beat her. "How long do I have?"

"At most? An hour. My estimate is that she should be in place in a half hour." The man looked at me curiously. He seemed like such an ordinary guy, but underneath that exterior was... what was it?

"Filthy piece of shit, that's what she means to me," I muttered, spitting at the ground. I paced back and forth a few steps before facing the man. "When will I have the power I was promised?"

The man frowned and rubbed his chin. "Soon," he replied.

"Soon."

* * *

"Hah! You're still struggling along back here, Blue?" I sneered, eager to wipe that stupid look off of her face. Had it always been there? The slight change in her? That hint of a smile before she saw him? _It's pointless, she's going to pay for what she's done to me. For taking him from me.  
_  
"I'm not going to rush my way through places, Gary..." Her hesitant, small voice was really starting to irritate him. But this time, it was different. WAS she different?

_Fuck it, fuck her! _"Heh, well guess what," I said mockingly, "I made Bill show me his rare Pokemon. After all, he is famous - inventing the Pokemon Storage System and everything."

"Uhm... Gary that's nice and all... I really should be continuing on... I have a Gym Badge to prepare for." She looked straight at me, the fear that was so common in her eyes gone.

My eyes saw red, and it wasn't because of her stupid Charmeleon. I clenched my fists.

"You really have no clue," I whispered slowly, gnashing my teeth. "I already beat Misty," I growled. "Now I'll beat you."

I took a deep breath before hurling a Pokeball. Blue had already prepared herself.

"Abra, go!"

* * *

She recalled her last Pokemon, looking at it fondly. Again she pet her Charmeleon. What the fuck was wrong with her? That thing wasn't supposed to be a pet! _WHY CAN'T I WIN?!_ "Smell ya later," I muttered, gritting my teeth and walking as fast as I could away from her. Furious! That's all that could describe my emotions.

Yet again she beats me! How can she keep winning? I'm more knowledgeable, I have all of the best equipment... "SO WHY DO I KEEP LOSING!?" I struck out with my leg, kicking a tree. My leg spazzed up and immediately began to throb. "Holy fuck," I huffed. "That bitch better watch out."

* * *

Since leaving for her journey, Blue had encountered and battled Gary three times. With each battle, he seemed to become even angrier. Today was no exception. She didn't know what she did wrong - she hadn't hurt him once. A memory floated into her brain:

_"Tch. Blue, come here." Gary looked at Blue, his eyebrows furrowed. She had been standing to the side, her arms crossed behind her back as she stared at the floor. She looked up at him and walked over to him. He grabbed the collar of her shirt and shook her once. "Don't you DARE take him from me," he growled._

Blue was shocked at being shaken but soon regained her composure. "What are you talking about? I went to find him and -"

"Shut up," he snarled, his brown eyes flashing with rage. "I know your little game. You're trying to get HIS -" he shot a glance at where the professor went "- attention. Putting on this shitty little 'oh, I'm so alone, please, somebody love me' act just for pity!" He shook her again roughly, but Blue didn't flinch, her eyes remained a dull blue. She took the verbal abuse before putting her hand on his wrist.

Blue's eyes lit up and she finally understood what Gary had been talking about. "He had been talking about the Professor..." Blue looked at Coal, who had been grooming himself. He was still pumped up after the battle, which seemed very easy for him to win. Bolt quickly took care of Gary's Wartortle.

She thought again. "Maybe he's... jealous? Of the attention..." Blue looked off into the distance. "Oh, Gary..."

Coal hummed in his throat, a soft guttural sound, reminding her that she had to continue her journey. Next stop, Nugget Bridge.

It wasn't a long walk when she spotted the first trainer. He had stopped her and explained that if she could beat all five trainers, then she'd win a fabulous prize. Blue's heart leapt - she loved prizes - and agreed enthusiastically. While on the bridge, she had spotted a patch of grass, and her enthusiasm multiplied, eager to get a new teammate.

Her Pokemon - Coal, Bolt, Pudge and Birdie - easily defeated the five trainers. With each of her trainer battles, however, Blue had taken great lengths to make sure that none of the opponents' Pokemon were seriously injured.

At last, she reached the end, and walked forward to greet the man who held the prize. "Congratulations," he said. "You've just won a fabulous prize!" His light brown hair and eyes seemed vaguely familiar to Blue.

"Are you... Daniel?" she asked, looking him over to make sure her guess was correct.

"Ah, Blue!" he came closer and embraced her. She stiffened, not sure as to how to proceed. "So nice to see you again."

"I thought you worked in Viridian City?"

"I work wherever I am assigned. It just so happens that I'm assigned here today. Here's your prize - a Nugget! Don't spend it all at once!" He reached from his bag and handed her a small, lumpy golden rock. Blue took it and placed it gingerly in her bag. "Since you're here - would you like to join Team Rocket?"

Coal growled and looked up at his trainer. He didn't like the sound of that team. Blue saw that Daniel noticed, and he hurried to hide his sneer. "What's Team Rocket?"

"We're an organization dedicated to research of Pokemon and Pokemon as a whole," Daniel said succinctly. He had to be as vague as possible in order to not give anything away. If this girl was anything like he had been told, she was important and he'd best not screw anything up. "So, how about it? Would you like to join?"


	16. Part Thirteen

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Uhm..." the woman said nervously.

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Lance?"

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Shh! You'll blow my cover - What's that sound?"

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Yeah, that's the thing..."

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

The woman with the short dark blue hair made a face as she held the phone to her ear. Her trusty Flareon, Blitz, was by her side, staring at the door. She had just attempted to hack into the main computer system to find out whatever information she could find. Unfortunately, she tripped an alarm and was now anxiously awaiting a return phone call.

"I tripped a wire," she said, wincing.

"You WHAT?!" the voice from the other line yelled in disbelief.

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"I was hacking into the computer, see..."

"Tell me later! Where's Adler?"

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"I'm not sure."

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Damn it all, Casey!"

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Oops - gotta go! Some grunts are here," Casey said, hanging up on the scarlet-haired man as some grunts in black peered through the doorway. Blitz yowled. "Fire Spin!" The attack went spiraling towards the doorway, and the grunts dived out of its way. The opening soon became engulfed in flames.

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

_Good, good... buys me more time..._"Blitz, use Ember if they try to barge in!" Casey turned to face the computer monitor. She pounded at the keyboard, messing up a few times due to nerves. She scanned each page restlessly, her eyes moving fast, skimming for special keywords to show up. A file by the name of "Blue Skye" caught her eye, with the words "Gary / Transformation / Revenge" highlighted through the passage. She quickly whipped out a USB from her glove and plugged it into the computer.

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Hey - get out of there!" came shouts from the doorway. The grunts were trying to barge their way through. Blitz unleashed an Ember attack, shooting past them in warning. He yowled and hissed, making himself appear larger. Casey finished downloading the file on the person named Blue and continued searching - this time she found a whole section dubbed 'The Capacitor and Its Power'. She vaguely remembered Lance tell her and Adler about it, and proceeded to download everything in that region.

By now, the grunts had managed to put out the flames, and Blitz jumped by his trainers' side. Casey hoped she downloaded as much information as she could and put the USB back into her glove. "Okay, Blitz... On the count of three!"

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

The grunts ran at her at the same time she launched herself forward at them. Everyone stopped, however, when a loud BOOM was heard behind them. A dark figure stood in the doorway, a giant dragon-like shadow behind him. Casey grinned. "Nice of you to join me," she said, jumping at a grunt, kicking him in the stomach, and knocking him to the floor. The gun in his hand clattered to the ground.

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

Lance frowned, arms crossed. "Move." Casey knew what he was going to do and jumped behind him. His Pokemons' head head was sticking through the doorway. "Dragonite, Hyper Beam."

The giant light orange dragon opened its mouth, a ball of pure white energy materializing in it. It grew as big as a basketball in two seconds, before being launched at the grunts, killing all but three and opening a giant hole behind them.

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

Casey ran with Blitz as fast as she could, jumping over falling rocks as best as she could. She was clumsy most of the time, but in a pinch that went away. _Those years of Hurdles in school really helped now! _she thought to herself. It wasn't long before Lance caught up with her, Dragonite back in its ball. "Did you find him?" she breathed, still running.

"I called him when you hung up. He's captured some people, but wouldn't say who. He's got a chopper coming to pick us up." The scarlet-haired man looked at the woman from the corner of his eye, frowning. "You're too conspicuous."

**INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT.**

"Harangue me about it later!"

* * *

The two made their way outside as parts of Mount Moon started crumbling. The hole the Hyper Beam left was enough to wreck most of the cave's infrastructure. Adler was standing beside two figures. Their hands were bound behind their backs and black bags covered their faces. Two mouth holes were cut out so the prisoners could breathe. "Look what I found," Adler said, face expressionless.

Lance walked over to the two and examined them thoroughly. "Are they...?"

"That's right. I was able to knock them out - apparently they were on their way somewhere, but I got to them before they reached Pewter. They should be gaining consciousness soon, so we'd best be quiet until then." Adler had taken his sunglasses and hat off, revealing more of his long, unkempt hair.

"I'm glad you're safe!" Casey exclaimed, waving her arms at him. Adler sighed.

"She tripped the alarm," Lance stated, also taking off his hat and sunglasses. His scarlet hair sprung up sideways, giving an 'I'm so cool' appearance.

"I heard."

"I'm the one getting all of the information! I found stuff about a 'Blue Skye' girl and about the 'Capacitor'." Casey was becoming irritated.

Ring ring ringringring! Casey's phone buzzed. She answered, "Hello?"

"The helicopter, I've got it now. In a few minutes I shall arrive!" a man's voice replied. He had a slight accent.

"That's awesome, sweetie! We'll be waiting!" She hung up, excited. She turned to face her companions. "Looker's going to be here soon!


	17. Part Fourteen

Daniel waited patiently for Blue's reply when he heard a loud **_BOOM _**coming from behind her. Blue swiftly turned around and the two saw smoke coming from Mount Moon. She started to look worried and he calmly said, "It's probably just trainers battling - sometimes it gets intense." He held back a frown. _What could they be doing? Something better not have gone wrong..._

"Well... thanks for the offer, Daniel, but... I'm going to pass." Her Charmeleon nodded self-righteously.

"What? Why not?" He became worried, but didn't show it. She wasn't the same as she was when he had first met her. Her demeanor was still the same; however she seemed surer of herself, if only just a little bit. "Team Rocket is for the good of all Pokemon," he lied.

"Uhm... I want to continue my journey. I have a lot of things I need to see and do before I even think about joining a team. I'm already doing something for Professor Oak, and I wouldn't want to let him down." Blue remembered that she was supposed to fill the Pokdex, but how could she, when she was restricted due to the Pokemon League? She'd have to talk to him about that.

"What a coincidence - we work alongside the good Professor as well," Daniel added. He had to get her to join them. He would say whatever it took.

Blue started to get nervous and wondered why he was pressuring her. Coal started to growl. "Really, I'm flattered," she said, taking a step backwards. Daniel narrowed his eyes at her. "But I can't."

"Come on," he said, losing his temper. "I'm telling you to join!"

Blue took another step backward, grasping the strap on her bag and shook her head 'no'.

Daniel's lips turned down into a snarl and took a step towards her, grabbing a Pokeball. "Fine - I'll make you an offer you can't refuse!" He tossed it, and a large purple snake popped out of it. It hissed, rattled its tail, and yawned, opening its mouth wide to show four poison-coated fangs. "Ekans, Wrap her!"

Blue quickly threw Pudge's Pokeball at the ground. "Pudge, Gust!" The bird Pokemon shrieked once before flapping its wings into a powerful gust of wind, stopping the snake in its tracks. The Ekans hissed and lunged forward, attempting to wrap the bird within its coil.

"Quick Attack," Blue cried, wanting Pudge to get out of there before it was too late.

"Rip it to shreds - use Bite!" Daniel wasn't going to let her escape, even if he did have to kill her Pokemon.

Pudge flew up into the air and when the snake looked up, he was blinded by the brightness of the sun. Pudge sped downward, tucking in her wings to gain speed, and as soon as she was an inch above the ground, she opened her wings and grabbed the Ekans in her talons. She rushed through the air, narrowly missing Daniel's head and spread her wings again, stopping her movement. However, when she stopped, Pudge released her grip on her foe and the momentum made it barrel off of the side of the bridge and into the water.

Daniel grunted in frustration, recalled his Ekans, and called out his next Pokemon - a Zubat. _Things would be easier if I could use my own Pokemon..._The little bat Pokemon didn't last long, however, as Blue commanded Pudge to perform another Quick Attack, knocking out it in one blow.

"Way to go, Pudge," Blue said, smiling as she recalled her cherished bird Pokemon. "Daniel, please, I need to continue."

Daniel spat on the ground. "I didn't want to have to do this," he said, reaching behind his back and pulling out a black gun. The shiny metal reflected Blue's shocked face. "However, it seems as if you've left me no choice." He lifted the gun towards her face and undid the safety.

Blue gasped and brought her hands to her mouth. Coal growled again and stood in front of her. Just then, his cellphone rang. Daniel hastily brought the phone to his ear. "What can I do for you?" he said, frustrated.

**"Leave the girl and get back to base."** The soft hum of the dial tone hung in the air.

Daniel furrowed his brows as he glared at Blue. "Get out of here," he hissed.

She heaved a sigh of relief and ran back towards Cerulean City, not looking back. For some reason, she felt betrayed.


	18. Part Fifteen

The International Police headquarters was located as the base of Mount Silver, in Johto, and on the outskirts of Kanto. The reason for this was to diminish the chances of ordinary trainers from stumbling upon them. After all, they were a secret organization dedicated to the well being of all trainers. The Pokemon League was an extension of them, with Lance as their representative, as he is the current Champion.

Another reason for the headquarters being there was due to the high leveled Pokemon that could be found in the area - if fugitives were to escape, they'd have a hard time finding a safe place to hide. Pokemon such as Mightyena, who were not native to Tohjo, prowled the outskirts, as ordered by their trainers. No-one could get in or out without the International Police knowing about it.

It was in this place, then, that Lance, Adler, Casey and Looker were planning to take their two hostages.

Upon Looker's arrival with the helicopter, the three of them had become quiet, as the broader man with dark brown hair had regained consciousness and began shouting obscenities. His red-haired partner had awoken as well, due to the shouting, but had chosen to remain quiet.

The loud **_FWISH FWISH FWISH FWISH_**of the helicopter's blades swirled the air around them, causing leaves, dirt and rocks to whirl around dangerously. Looker was at the cockpit, pilot goggles on his eyes. He waved them over, slowing the blades to a reasonable level. Adler bodily grabbed the dark haired man, attempting to subdue him.

"Th' fuck you think you're doin'?" said the man angrily, wiggling violently. "Let go of me!"

Adler remained silent and he muscled the man, through the attempts to break free, to the helicopter. He grabbed the man's head - "Don't fuckin' touch me!" - and lowered it inside. Lance didn't have much trouble with the man's partner. He went quietly and without a fuss. Lance took notice of this and determined that he seemed almost too compliant. Casey was the last inside the helicopter and, with a quick peck on the cheek to Looker, she hopped into the passenger side.

"Off we go, then," Looker said, turning on the engine and flying off.

* * *

**_SMACK! _**The sound of a hand colliding with a cheek echoed throughout the small room.

"What do you know?!"

_Ptoo. _The dark brown-haired man spat at his aggressor.

**_SMACK!_**

"You'd better answer me."

"Fuck off."

**_SMACK!_**

"I'll ask one more time: why was Team Rocket in Mount Moon?"

The man only grunted in reply. Bruno frowned. He reached forward, grasped the man's arm and yanked it backwards brutally, causing the man to howl in agony.

Bruno looked towards the back wall, which held a one-way glass window. The look in his eyes indicated that he didn't think he could coerce his prisoner into talking.

Lance gazed through the window and sighed. This was what he hated most about his job: the torture. Brutal, but necessary. Lance didn't know if Bruno liked being the 'bad cop' or not, all he knew that if a prisoner wasn't talking, he'd get the answers one way or another.

Lance pushed the button for the intercom. "I'll send in the Alakazam," he told his comrade, voice purged of emotion.

He thought back to the other room, where they held the man's partner. They'd already started on the mental torture. Sooner or later, they'd break.

They always do in the end.


	19. Part Sixteen

Water.

Maxie was drowning in it.

In his nose, his mouth, his lungs.

_Am I dying?_

**Mount Moon, **a voice whispered.

_I can't swim, _he told the voice.

A humming sensation filled the area.

Maxie didn't know where he was; all he knew was that there was water and that he was drowning.

Though the liquid was filling every crevice of his body, his lungs didn't ache nor burn, as is the sensation of drowning.

**Why were they there? **the voice asked again.

_Where is Archie?_

_Is this his doing?_

_He knows I don't like the water..._

Maxie ignored the voice, too caught up in his own thoughts.

The humming sensation began again, this time the water started to heat up and swirl around, causing Maxie's hair to come askew and float around his head aimlessly.

Maxie opened his eyes.

The water was an opaque blue-green with swirls of white dipping, diving, swaying with the current.

He gazed restlessly, forgetting his feeling of drowning. He opened his mouth, preparing to speak, but the voice cut him off.  
**  
You will speak when spoken to! **The voice was angry.

Pain.

Searing pain, right through his skin, every pore, every nerve was burning.

Maxie screamed, the water entering his mouth yet again, and he choked, gagging all the while. He brought his fingers to his arms, scratching at himself - his fingernails left jagged claw marks, staining the surrounding water with crimson blood.

Then the heat, the pain, the water, everything, all disappeared.

Maxie had shut his eyes through the ordeal, opened them, saw he was unscathed, and sighed a breath of relief.

_Am I dead? _He almost forgot that the voice was even there.

So cloudy, so cloudy. Maxie was having trouble thinking clearly.

**Maxie.**

He looked around for the source, found nothing, and closed his eyes again.

* * *

A small, elderly woman with short blonde hair stood beside Lance. Though she preferred Ghost-type Pokemon, she was very skilled with using Psychic-types for torture. She was a pro, and back in her younger years they did far worse than this towards their prisoners. Far worse.

"He's not responding as well as we'd like," Agatha said, facing the glass and looking at the prisoner that was inside.

Her Alakazam was floating, meditating across from the red-haired man whose appendages were bound to the chair in which he sat. Its eyes were open and faintly glowing blue. It was psychic-ly bound towards the prisoner and linked towards his trainer.

Lance turned to face her. "What's going on?"

"He thinks he's drowning. But his mind... it's so cloudy. I can't get through to him, and he's forgetting what is happening. His mind has reverted to a childlike state, it seems."

Lanced sighed. They'd have to go deeper and risk him losing his mind. "Is there anything more you can do?"

Agatha grinned. "There's always more."

* * *

**Archie did this to you.**

_He wouldn't do anything like that..._

**Oh, he wouldn't? Remember when he pushed you into the deep end?**

_It was an accident, an accident..._

**He did it on purpose. He knew you couldn't swim and purposefully wanted you in the water. He wanted you to SUFFER.**

_He's my friend, he couldn't, he wouldn't..._

**Oh, but he did, child, he did!**

Maxie shook his head back and forth, swirling the waters all the while. Each time the voice spoke, it was as if steel knives were plunged into his head. Each time the pain would appear, and he'd been about to scream in pain, the pain would subside.

**He wouldn't have done that if you had told him why Team Rocket was in Mount Moon.**

_No?_

**Team Rocket is doing something bad, something terribly bad, and Archie wants to help them.**

**He was willing to kill you to get the answers.**

_Archie wouldn't do that. _Maxie wasn't having any of it. What was going on?

The voice changed into something different, something childlike. The voice of his old friend, Archie.

**_Jus' tell me the goddamn reason, Maxie!_**

_...Archie...?_

_**What did they want from Mount Moon, Maxie? **_The voice made Archie's voice sound pained, emotion brimming behind the adolescents' words.

Maxie couldn't bear to hear his friend so close to tears.

_They wanted energy..._

_**Why?**_

_They wanted to power the P.P._

_I don't know what it means..._

_I don't think things will work, _Maxie was trailing off. Boy, was he sleepy.

**What won't work?** The voice had discarded his friends' voice and had gone back to its original pitch.

_Something about a blue girl..._

Maxie lost consciousness.

* * *

"Damn," muttered Agatha. "The stress got to him."

Lance had been lucky that he'd asked for her Alakazam to link the happenings to him as well. He looked at Maxie's bound self: it had slouched forward on its own, his head touching the table. A small pool of drool formed on the table.

He was quiet, taking in what Maxie had said. What could the P.P. be? What type of energy was in Mount Moon? Was that what the Capacitor was for? All of these questions roamed through his head. _And what did he mean by 'a blue girl'?_

* * *

"So," Casey began, spreading the crisp paperwork on the table. "This is everything I was able to download from Team Rocket's computer in Mount Moon. As you can see, it's not very much."

Sitting at the chairs surrounding the table were Adler, Lance and Looker. They all looked towards Casey expectantly. The four of them were a team, the only team assigned to look into Team Rocket's affairs at Mount Moon. This was looking to be an even bigger job than they had expected.

Lance had informed the others what they learned from Maxie, and they were all disappointed that they couldn't get anything from Archie.

Casey continued on. "As we know, Professor Oak has a grandson. His name is Gary. Looking at the paperwork, you'll see that there are a few pages talking about him, and about revenge. Revenge on what, exactly? My guess it's this "Blue Skye" girl, who's mentioned on the remaining paperwork." She passed out copies to the three, all stapled and organized.

They carefully leafed through the paperwork, skimming for important passages.

"What does she have anything to do with it?" Adler asked. "I see no reason why she's of any importance. He's got a grudge against her - so what?"

"Ah!" Casey raised her finger and smiled at him. "So you see a little snag. I did more research when you were... dealing with them... and I've found that this Blue girl is actually under our list of Trainers who were assigned to the Nuzlocke challenge."

"That's excellent work! You've done a fine job, my dear," Looker said, nodding to himself proudly. He'd been more engrossed with the 'Transformation' paperwork than anything else, but he'd prefer not to mention that to her.

Lance had been on edge ever since they'd first spoken about Blue. The most recent passage had caught his eye, and that had said that the most recent sighting was of her beating Brock mercilessly with a Charmander. He then remembered the fierce Charmeleon the cute, quiet girl owned in Mount Moon. He had to appear mysterious and without mercy - it was a part of his disguise. He'd hated the fact that he had scared her, but there was nothing he could have done. Another thought came to him: Maxie had also mentioned a 'blue girl'. _Could they be the same person?_

Lance stood up, ignoring the thoughts about Blue and changing the subject. "There's also a passage about Gary and a 'transformation'."

"Yes... Unfortunately, everything is blocked out or erased." Casey's eyes turned downcast. "Everything was there, right on the computer - I saw it! Someone must have made sure that if security was ever breached, and information was stolen, then they'd never get it..."

Looker stood up as well. "Then further investigation is required, it seems! Yes, we must do that."

"I must be getting back to my country." Adler finally spoke. "I will be missed. However, I will ask my contacts and will speak with you when I can."

Everyone nodded in agreement - if Unova's Champion went missing for too long, who knows what would happen. With that, Adler strode out the door.

"I'll head towards Vermillion, then," Lance said. He was going to get to the bottom of things.

Looker was silent as Casey nodded. "Yes, yes that's perfect! Make sure to keep yourself disguised - your name is well known but not your face! I'm going to go back to Mount Moon and see if I can dig up anything else... I doubt it, since we trashed the place..."

Lance nodded once towards the pair and strode out of the room.

Looker had been watching his expression the entire time he was in the meeting room.


	20. Part Seventeen

Blue awoke with a start, her hair getting into her face. She gasped and shook all over. The nightmare... it began again. She thought they had gone away, but they haven't. Now, it seems, that her nightmares are back to stay, and with a new addition. The soft 'click' of the safety being released, and the loud _**BANG **_the bullet made as it shot out of the barrel still hung in her mind. When the bullet hit her, Blue woke up.

This was the second nightmare she had that night, however. The first was of a giant, bloody eye that followed Blue wherever she was. Dragging the optic nerve behind it as it flew silently through the air, the eye gazed at her with contempt and anger. Punishing Blue for allowing Sting to die. She whimpered in her sleep - even called out once or twice - before the nightmare ended.

Coal stirred in his sleep. He had moved from the floor to Blue's side in the hopes of making her nightmares subside. His warmth comforted her, and she smiled. She'd never had a pet before - not even a Growlithe puppy - so having her Charmeleon with her was pleasant. Then she realized something.

Blue had never smiled this much in a long time. Regardless of the hard times that she's faced - and she will definitely face a lot more - she's always had her Pokemon, had Coal, to be there for her. She had never known companionship, and now that she had it, she was learning to enjoy it.

Enjoy life.

But what happened yesterday really bothered her. _Why did he attack me?_ she thought to herself. She shuddered again and rubbed her arms. _Why did he want me to join Team Rocket? _She shook off the thought for now and looked at the clock.

8:00 a.m.

She sighed and decided it was time to get up and out of bed. Normally she'd never wake up this early - preferring to sleep in until 11 a.m. - but she couldn't go back to sleep. Blue didn't want to experience the gunshot nightmare again. Patting Coal on the side, she swung her legs over the side, and brought herself up.

It was time to start the day.

* * *

"Hi honey! Where are you now? Are you enjoying your Pokemon? Have you caught any? Did you beat any Gym Leaders? Did you meet a guy? What's been going on? Oooh this is so exciting - I remember when I first became a trainer..." Amber was rattling off questions as fast as a Rapidash could run.

Blue let out a soft laugh. It used to be so uncharacteristic for her. "Hey, mom... I made it to Cerulean two days ago, actually."

Her mother squealed when she heard her daughter call her 'mom' - Blue almost always used to call her the formal 'mother'. "Cerulean is such a pretty city. Have you fought the Gym Leader yet?"

Blue walked around the room to peer out the window. She hadn't yet left the Pokemon Center to continue her journey. The sun was shining, the wind blowing, and several trainers with their Pokemon were enjoying each others' company. She switched the phone to her other ear. "I haven't... Uhm, something happened yesterday... and I had to stop. I didn't get too far, actually..."

Her mother's voice was tense. "What happened?"

"Do you know anything about Team Rocket?"

"Why would you want to know about them, dear?" She chuckled nervously.

"The person I met yesterday... he asked me to join them..." Blue trailed off, nervous to add the rest. She knew her mother would worry, and that there was nothing she could do about it now.

"And then what happened?" A curt reply, not really a question.

"He... pulled a gun out on me. He got a phone call after he pulled it out, and let me go. ...You should have seen the look on his face... He was furious after I beat him in a battle - you should have seen Pudge! - and kept trying to get me to join. I was lucky that he got a phone call... he let me go, just like that."

"A man pulled a gun on you?!" Amber sounded worried. "Oh, honey... are you hurt?"

"I'm okay, really. You know about Team Rocket?"

"...I didn't want to tell you, but Team Rocket is an evil gang who wants to control Pokemon. They're greedy and conniving; I'd be careful if I were you..." She sighed before changing the subject. "So, dear, tell me about your Pokemon..."

Blue then told her mother everything that had happened on her journey - from catching her first Pokemon, losing Sting, catching Don, fighting Brock and how what he said really impacted her, to the strange happenings in Mount Moon, and finally to where she was currently. Once she finished her good-byes, she then called Professor Oak.

He answered the phone out of breath. "Yes, hello? Oak Research Lab..."

"Professor?"

"Oh, Blue, nice to hear from you! Uhm, I'm kind of in the middle of something right now, so if you could call me back...?" A crash and voices could be heard from his side.

Blue wasn't in a very good mood. After hearing that Team Rocket was a bunch of thugs and crooks, she grew frustrated. Being lied to was a newly found pet peeve of hers. She'd have to have a talk with Daniel the next time she saw him. Gun or not, she wasn't going to let him get away with lying to her. And to think she was almost glad to see a somewhat-familiar face.

"Professor, what can you tell me about Team Rocket? And why was I chosen for this Challenge?"

"My my, Blue, you've certainly changed..."

She cut him off. "Professor, I'm sorry, I'm not in the mood right now. If this is what it feels like to be angry, then I guess I'm angry. Things have been... so wacky... with me lately that I have no idea what's happening with me. Please tell me what I need to know."

Another voice yelled in the background. The sound of scuffling feet and the closing of a door led her to believe that he had moved locations. "When the League chooses someone to be a part of the Challenge, they do so randomly. Every six months they get a list of potential new Trainers and they choose whoever gets picked. I told you before that they've not had a Challenger in a long time, have I not? I'm not sure why they're starting again, but I think that if trainers keep catching every Pokemon in sight, there won't be many left. If you succeed, I think they may be changing the rules around here..."

"So I'm a lab rattata?" Blue frowned. "Tell me what you know about Team Rocket."

Another crash, louder this time. "Blue, I really have to go." He sounded worried.

"Bye, Professor." She hung up, curious as to what was going on in the background. She didn't like the idea of the Nuzlocke Challenge, but she had to follow the rules.

_What's going on?_


	21. Part Eighteen

It was midday - around 1:00 pm, to be precise - when Blue adjusted the bag on her left shoulder as she checked her Pokedex. She had finally found the 'mute' button, so she was a lot happier with the little red machine. She passed over Nugget Bridge with no hassles - the trainers from the day before were long gone - and she was able to check the movesets of her four Pokemon.

She took the left path as soon as she got off of the bridge and was immediately challenged to a friendly battle. Birdie was able to get into action, knocking her opponent down with one Double Kick attack. Blue thought about the Moon Stone she had found in Mount Moon (_I need to figure out what happened back there, _she thought to herself) and decided to evolve Birdie later.

Blue tried not thinking about what had happened the past few days; she wanted to view things in a different manner; her past way of thinking about things more often than naught ended in tears. She took a deep breath and continued moving through the tall grass. Coal was rummaging through the dirt, looking for a small rock to play with. He picked it up in his claw and tossed it ahead of them.

He was about to get it when he stopped and sniffed, bringing his head up into the air. "Do you smell something, boy?" He looked at Blue, snorted, and jumped into the grass, pouncing on something. Blue parted the grasses and saw what he had jumped on. Underneath him was a small, yellow humanoid fox-like Pokemon whose eyes were closed. It seemed to be sleeping.

_I better make this catch count... _Blue swiftly took out a Pokeball from her bag. It had been awhile since she made her last catch, and the fact that she only had four Pokemon bothered her. _I wonder what type of Pokemon it is...? _Coal had remained over the Pokemon, sniffing it.

Blue carefully walked over and placed the ball on top of the yellow Pokemon's head. _**Ding!**_ The Pokemon went in without a fight. She checked its status on the Pokedex and found that it didn't have a status condition.

"ABRA, THE PSI POKEMON. THIS POKEMON SLEEPS FOR 18 HOURS A DAY AND IS ABLE TO USE ITS PSYCHIC POWERS EVEN WHILE ASLEEP." It went on to tell her some other information as well: Male with a Hasty nature. It's only known move being Teleport. _Well, that's unfortunate..._

"Male, huh? Let's see... I'll call you... Franz. I wonder how hard it'll be to train you?" Blue said to the Pokeball in her hand. She looked to Coal and smiled at him. "You're such a good Pokemon. Let's continue forward, shall we?"

She continued walking forward, and a few minutes later there was a large hedge of grass on one side of the path; she could faintly hear the ocean lapping on to the shore. The sound was very soothing as she and Coal continued their trek through the path.

They had heard several trainers mention a man named Bill - apparently, he was some sort of famous Pokemaniac, whatever that was. Blue was very curious as to what he did, so she hurried forward until at last she came across a clearing where a lone house sat in front of a small pond. There was a faded sign that read "Bill's House", so Blue figured she was in the right place.

Once, twice, three times she knocked on the door. She waited a moment, looking at Coal nervously, before knocking again. She thought her heard a faint muffling sound, so she hesitantly put her hand on the cold brass doorknob and slowly turned the handle.

Her gasp of shock was heard over the soft creak of the door as she opened it wide enough for her to walk inside. Even though the room was dark, she could still see the faint outlines of miscellaneous furniture from the light that the windows brought in. She brought her hand to the wall, searching for a light.

The room was a lot messier than she had originally thought. Bookshelves were overturned, and paper was covering the entire floor. _Is this... Bill's research? What happened here? _The curtains were ripped and looked as if they were thrown on the ground with haste. The cushions on the couch were overturned and the stuffing was ripped out. The computer by the wall was glowing: a faint blue, its screen barely visible due to the amount of damage to it...

"What... what happened? How couldn't anyone know of this...?" Blue looked around, bringing her hands up to her mouth. She couldn't understand this.

Again she heard the muffling sound. Blue tried to pinpoint the noises' location, but her trusty Charmander beat her to it. He walked over to the giant machine in the corner of the room and sniffed the door. He made a soft whining noise and scratched at the door with his red claw. Something banged softly from the inside of the metal machine.

"Could... could someone be in there?" She looked at the wall frantically, looking for something to release who or whatever was inside. "Where's the 'open' button?!" Then she saw it. On the table, near the computer, was a red button. She shook her head, confounded, and hurried to it. The label said 'RELEASE' and she smashed her hand against it.

With a hiss, the door slowly opened. Coal rushed inside as soon as he could fit. Blue walked over to inspect the metal machine when she gasped in shock.

Lying in the middle of the machine was a man whose body was bound. His brown hair was disheveled and his face looked gaunt. There were bags under his crazed eyes. He looked at her and gave a maniacal laugh before slumping forward, hitting his head on the ground. Coal sniffed him again and licked his face once before nudging him with his head.

"Coal, help me move him..." Blue said, untying his bonds.

* * *

It was a half hour later before the man woke up. He was lying on the couch because Blue and Coal had moved him. She had thought that he would be more comfortable there, since the metal machine didn't look that comfortable. Blue had busied herself with cleaning up the papers that were littered about when a voice stopped her.

"Wh-who... are you...?" he asked weakly.

She turned around to face him and gave a light smile. "Uhm... I'm Blue. I... found you in that weird machine. You were tied up... and so we -" she looked over at Coal and back again "- set you on the couch. I hope you don't mind that I tried to clean up..."

He coughed and rubbed his throat with his hand. Blue went to the sink and filled a glass up with water and handed it to him. He took a sip and said, "Thanks, Blue... I owe you one. I'm Bill, by the way."

"Why were you tied up...?"

The man scoffed. "Those miserable Rockets..." he began.

Blue pursed her lips together and furrowed her brows. Again Team Rocket was mentioned in an awful way. _What was with them,_ she wondered, _and what did they want?_

"They wanted information, and I wouldn't give it to them. That was two days ago... They tied me up and left me in my transmitter. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be dead."

"That's horrible... Do people not visit you? Someone could have heard..." Blue tried to think of an explanation of why no trainers came to his aid.

Bill shook his head. "I'm not big into fancy shin-digs and parties; I'm mainly engrossed in my work. People who visit me just want me to show them my rare Pokemon... now I just have them all online. Except, maybe, for my favorites, which are kept on that computer... but it's beyond repair now..."

He stood up warily. Coal was napping by the couch and stretched and moved back to his trainer.

Bill spoke again. "I have to thank you, somehow."

Blue held up her hands in front of her. "Oh, no... It's okay... There's no need!"

He rummaged through some drawers hidden in the bookshelf. When he found what he was looking for, he held it up and handed it to Blue. "Here, maybe this will do. They invited me to their party, but I wasn't going to attend. I'd like you to have it for saving me!"

"Okay... Thank you, Bill." Blue put it in her bag, which was lying on the floor. She adjusted her hat before asking, "Do you need any help here?"

"No, no... I can handle this. You must be a trainer, then? The easiest way to Cerulean is just past the pond and through the hedges. Don't worry, there's a dirt path and you'll be able to take the scenic shortcut back. It even leads to the Pokemon Center!"

"Will you be okay?" Blue was still worried.

"No lasting damage, I think. Don't worry," he winked at her, "I'll make sure I get Nurse Joy to look me over. Goodbye!"

Gathering her things, Blue beckoned to Coal and started for the door. With a quick wave and a soft 'goodbye', she walked out the door and headed back to Cerulean.


	22. Part Nineteen

Blue stood outside the Pokemon Gym and stared up at its roof. Her Charmeleon was by her feet, looking anxious. "Okay, just breathe," she said to herself. "Just... breathe..."

She walked through the sliding glass doors and into the Gym. A dark-haired man wearing thick glasses was waiting for her. "WELCOME CHALLENGER," he announced in a fake voice.

Blue glanced at Coal and then back at the man. "Err... hello. We're here to challenge the Leader."

The man gave a skeptical glance at her Pokemon. "You don't plan on using him, do you? This is a Water-type Gym." Coal snorted in defiance.

_He's stronger than you know, _Blue thought defensively. "When will I be able to challenge the Leader?"

"Today is your lucky day! She just opened up, actually." The man nodded to himself, blushing. "She likes taking morning swims."

"Uhm..." The man's reaction to the female Gym Leader started to make her feel awkward. She coughed to get his attention.

"Oh! I'm sorry. Go right in," he said, opening the second set of doors fo her. Blue walked through and took a deep breath.

"Good luck."

The inside of the room was huge, and in the center was a large pool. In the pool there were several platforms that land-dwelling Pokemon could use to fight upon. A shadow was swimming around in the pool, but from high up in the stands, Blue couldn't make out who - or what - it was.

Blue exhaled and took another deep breath as she descended the stairs of the bleachers. The walls were decorated with various Water-type Pokemon, and it seemed as if this building was used for shows. Blue made it to the bottom as the figure in the water got out.

It was a red-haired girl, around Blue's age, in a dark blue bikini. She smiled at Blue and said, "Well look what we have here - a challenger." She grabbed a towel that was on a nearby bench and wrapped it around her. "I don't think I've seen your face before!"

"I haven't been in the city very long," Blue admitted. "My name is Blue."

"Nice to meetcha! I'm Misty, the Water-Type Master! You ain't seen anyone better as a Water-type Trainer!"

Blue frowned, but didn't say anything. She doubted that Misty was the best Water-type Trainer. "Uhm... shall we get started?"

Misty smirked as she glanced at Blue's Charmeleon. "Heh - you've got guts for bringing a Fire-type into this Gym! My tactic is an all-out offensive, so I hope you're ready for this!"

Misty put a pair of denim shorts on as she walked over to Blue. "First, I'll need to see your Trainer Card."

Blue dug into her bag and brought it out - on it was a small Boulderbadge symbol - and handed it to Misty. She took it and examined the card front and back. "So, you were chosen to be a Nuzocker, eh?" Misty said, amused. "Everything seems to be in order! Now, choose your first Pokemon!"

Blue frowned and followed Misty's lead as she walked over to the other side of the pool. Blue walked up the steps nervously, and Coal refused to get closer to the pool. She quietly convinced him to come up with her and sit by her feet. Blue grabbed a Pokeball and tossed it in the air.

"Go, Pudge!"

Misty smirked again as she saw the large bird flap its wings with confidence. "Do you know what they say about birds? Get their wings wet, and they're useless! Staryu, show 'em!" She tossed her Pokeball at the water.

A light brown starfish with a small red gem in its center emerged from the water. Its 'gaze' seemed to follow Pudge with every flap she took. Pudge eyed her foe and flew around it.

"Water Pulse!"

"Pudge, dodge it with a Quick Attack!" Blue's blood was pumping as she saw the enormous jet of water being sent at her bird Pokemon.

Pudge, however, had no problems evading, and was able to nimbly maneuver out of the way. With an aerial flip, Pudge hurtled toward the Staryu.

"Duck underwater, Staryu! Get out of the way!"

Blue watched as Misty's eyes turned wide as she called the order too late. Pudge knocked out its opponent with one mighty blow.

"Staryu..." Misty returned her unconscious Pokemon. "Why didn't you kill it?"

"Pokemon aren't tools of war," Blue replied quietly, but still loud enough for Misty to hear. "We've practiced a lot with not hurting our opponents more than necessary..."

"That's pretty noble of you. Of course, this means nothing - I'm a Gym Leader and with this next Pokemon, you're finished! Starmie, finish this!"

She tossed another Pokeball and a larger purple starfish emerged. The gem in its center was larger and more beautiful. Blue became nervous.

"Pudge, be on your guard - Sand Attack!"

Pudge cawed and flapped her wings with power at the foe. Grains of sand and dirt flew off of her feathers and hurtled toward the starfish.

"Water Pulse!'

The purple starfish sprayed a larger jet of water at Pudge, but again she dodged. Blue quickly recalled her Pokemon. _This one looks tough..._"Bolt, I choose you!"

Blue tossed Bolt's Pokeball on to the platform and she emerged with a burst of electricity. "Chhhhuuuuuuuuuuu!" she cried.

"Smart move, recalling your Pidgeotto. But sending in a Pikachu in the middle of a battle wasn't very smart! Water Pulse!"

"Bolt, Thundershock!"

"Pikaaa..." Starmie swam close to the Pikachu in order to score more of a direct hit. Bolt's cheeks spurted more electricity as she jumped into the water to dodge the deluge of water.

"CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

Sparks were everywhere under the water. Bolt had grabbed on to Starmie's back legs and released the strongest Thundershock she could muster. She swam and hopped back on to the platform as the purpe starfish floated to the surface.

Misty's look of horror as her beloved Pokemon lay sizzling almost made Blue lose her lunch. "Bolt..." she said, panting heavily to stop from throwing up, "great job..." She looked at Misty, careful not to linger on Starmie's lifeless form. "Misty... I'm sorry..."

Bolt swam over to her Trainer and proudly chirped to Coal, who gave a toothy grin.

Misty was kneeling by her Pokemon. "I didn't think you'd actually win..." she said, recalling her Starmie. "Staryu and Starmie are able to regenerate; they'll both be fine with a good rest. Not many rookies beat me on their first try..."

Both she and Blue walked around to the edge and met halfway. Misty placed a sticker on the back of Blue's Trainer Card. "You've earned the Cascadebadge; it allows traded Pokemon up to level 30 to obey your command."

Blue took her card back from Misty and placed it in her bag.

And since you've earned two badges," Misty continued, "you are also allowed to have another Pokemon out of its Pokeball. I assume you'll choose your Pikachu?"

Blue looked to the ground, at her two Pokemon. Bolt was riding on top of Coal's shoulders and looked very smug with herself. _She has earned it..._Blue nodded.

"You're tougher than you look, you know."

Blue looked at her, confused. "What?"

"I didn't want to believe Brock at first - he's been known to stretch the truth from time to time - but seeing is believing. You beat my fully-grown Starmie with a Pikachu, with a weak Electric-type move! Your Charmeleon looked unafraid of the water after you talked to him! How did you do it?"

Blue bit her lip; she didn't know what to say. "I haven't really done anything... I just... you know, spent some time with my Pokemon... We've gone through a lot, and... well I think they're my friends." She placed a hand on Coal's head as Bolt jumped onto her shoulder.

Misty closed her eyes and smiled before opening them again. "I see. Well, if that's the case, then you should probably head over to Vermillion City. The Gym Leader there, Lt. Surge, is a real pain in the ass. He'll test your limits... But I'm sure you'll do fine."

"Thanks, Misty... See you around," Blue said, waving. She walked towards the exit and didn't release her nervousness until she was met with the bright sun outside.


	23. Part Twenty

Blue sat patiently on a bench as her Pokemon were being healed by Nurse Joy. It was late afternoon, and a few trainers were loitering about the lobby. Everyone seemed happy to be with their Pokemon, and Blue wondered if they had ever lost a Pokemon during a battle.

Sure, she had done well this time, but what about at the next Gym? She purged the idea from her mind. _I should be happy that we won,_ Blue thought. _Things have been so... crazy... these past few days..._

"Excuse me, Miss Blue?" a woman's voice called. Blue looked up, rubbing her face. "Your Pokemon are all healed!"

Blue walked to the counter and gave her thanks. She placed her balls tenderly in her bag after releasing her Charmeleon and Pikachu. Bolt hopped on to her shoulder and chirped happily and Coal snorted smoke out of his nostrils. "Let's go, then," Blue said, as she headed for the door.

A woman confronted her as Blue turned the corner. "D-don't go over there!" she cried breathlessly. "H-HE HAS A G-GUN!" The woman's mascara had run down her face as evidence that she had been crying.

Blue was startled and took a step backwards. "Wh-what?" She looked around, a few other people had been running in the opposite direction of a small house by the water. A woman in a blue policewoman's uniform stood out front, giving orders to a couple policemen. The woman yelped and ran away as fast as she could. Blue walked towards the female officer almost without thinking. The skies had begun to turn cloudy, and Blue could hear the distant sound of thunder echo through the mountains towards the east of the city. The officer noticed Blue as she came closer and frowned. She saw on the officer's nametag that her name was Jenny.

"I'm sorry, miss, but this area is strictly off-limits. I'm afraid that I have to ask you to leave." The officer began shooing Blue away with her hands.

"Uhm..." Blue started, unmoving. She was both hesitant and curious as to what was happening. Bolt peered from her shoulder curiously and Coal sat on his haunches. "What happened? I heard from this woman... that..."

The older woman looked exasperated. "It's Team Rocket - he's holding the owner of this house hostage and is refusing to let him go... I don't know where he got a gun - they're outlawed in Kanto as well as Johto..."

Blue thought for a moment, her brain sorting through a few ideas. The thunder rolled again - it was a couple of miles away. "If he won't come out... is he waiting for something? Perhaps a ransom?"

Officer Jenny understood what she meant. "He's been saying nothing but nonsense: 'I want blue' and 'Give me blue!' What could he mean? It doesn't make any logical sense that he'd ask for a _color_... But we've spoken too much - your life could be in danger just by standing here with me! Please, you must leave!" Jenny began escorting Blue away, signaling to a fellow male officer to guard the ransacked house.

"My name is Blue," Blue said slowly. Things were becoming more and more strange. _Team Rocket again...? _"Why would he... want me...?"

Officer Jenny stopped, her dark blue hair bouncing. "What?! You're the blue he's talking about? If you are... then... I won't let you go in, even if you did want to... You would have to be protected, and your Pokemon don't look very tough."

Blue turned to face the officer. Although she was relatively young, she was considered tall for a woman at the height of 5'8". Blue was able to look the older woman in the eyes with ease. "I... I have two Badges... Bolt here was able to beat her Starmie without getting hurt! I... I want to help in any way I can."

Officer Jenny looked incredulous as she eyed Blue's Pikachu. "You beat Misty? I have to admit that you have spunk... But spunk can only get you so far." She sighed and shook her head. "Put your Pokemon away and I'll tell you what to do..."

Fifteen minutes later, Blue hesitantly walked into the house. She had donned some protective gear, as well as a large, dark grey trench coat to hide her Pikachu. Her heart was pounding - never in a million years did she think that she would have to do something as dangerous as this. It seemed so uncharacteristic of her. _What's been happening to me? Why... why do I always end up in dangerous situations...?_

She took a good look at her surroundings. The inside of the house was trashed: bookshelves that had normally lined the walls were now toppled over, their contents spilled onto the floor; the television set was bashed in as if someone had taken a baseball bat to it; chairs with leather upholstery were ripped to shreds and their legs had been broken off. Blue shuddered involuntarily and Bolt nudged her head against Blue's belly. _Whoever had been here must have wanted to create a scene..._she thought.

"Uhm... h-hello?" she called quietly, hoping that the Team Rocket member could hear her. "I'm Blue... y-you... you wanted me...?" Blue couldn't stop her teeth from chattering.

"Come outside," a man gruffly commanded. "Nice and slow."

On the far north-side wall was a large hole. It seemed too clean-cut to have been made by a drill, so Blue assumed that a Pokemon made it. Her heart skipped another beat as she walked towards the hole in the wall. "Okay... I'm coming through..." She hesitantly put her leg through the opening slowly, as ordered, and then subsequently the rest of her body.

"Very good." The man stepped forward as soon as she was through, sporting a menacing grin. "Now just stay quiet and you won't be joining my little friend over here," he said, gesturing to the hooded body that lay floating in the river.

Blue's eyes widened in shock and she gasped. "What... what do you want from m-me..."

"Heh-heh-heh. It's not what _I_ want, it's what _Team Rocket _wants. And you," he said, drawing a black gun out of his pocket that made her cringe in fear, "I've heard about you." He stood next to Blue and rubbed the gun against her arm.

"I d-didn't d-d-do anything..." she cowered, looking at the ground.

She tried standing as still as she could, trying not to provoke the man. She could feel his dark green eyes bore into her skin. "Do you know why they sent me?" When Blue remained silent, he continued. "They sent me because I'm the cruelest, the meanest. Or was it because that I know how to get things done?" He pressed the gun against her back this time and leaned forward to whisper in her ear. "I'm not sure why you're of special interest to my boss, so I won't kill you."

Blue had her eyes shut as tightly as she could manage, a few tears escaping from them and rolling down her cheeks. She didn't want to be in this position, didn't want to have to face all of these dangers.

"Oh, did I make the little baby cry? Boo hoo," he mocked. "You can forget about using that Pikachu that you've got hiding - oh yes, I know about your little scheme. For now, I will let you go." He placed a TM into the front of her shirt. "You take this and be a good girl. Exit through the back - I don't want you to squeal to Little Miss Officer out front."

He pushed Blue forward, knocking her to the ground. She fell on her face, and blushed when her skirt rose up past her underwear. The man chuckled, "My, my, aren't we packing a little junk in the trunk? You'd better leave before I lose my composure."

She blushed again and stood up hurriedly, grabbing her bag. Bolt had jumped out of her trench coat and on to her shoulder. Bolt produced sparks from her cheek and looked merciless. Blue ran past the hedges, hoping she could follow the man's directions. The last thing she heard before exiting Cerulean City was the maniacal laughter from the Team Rocket member.


End file.
